It’s time once again to put the villains of Dreamworks Animation on trial!
In this installment, we’ll be sentencing everything
from a peacock to the boogeyman himself, so sit down and relax as we get this started.
This courtroom is now officially in session!
And today, as we continue our way through the Dreamworks library…
we have a variety of bad guys on our docket…
Lots of sequels and spin-offs, including Kung Fu Panda 2, Madagascar 3 and the firs Puss
in Boots film… as well as the very unique, Rise of the Guardians.
I’m Brad with WickedBinge, and this is Sentencing Dreamworks Villains For Their Crimes.
We’re heading back to China as we look at the villains of today’s first film, Kung
Fu Panda 2!
First on the stand today is none other than the perilous peacock known only as Lord Shen!
Without a doubt, Shen from Kung Fu Panda 2 stands as one of the most remarkable villains
that DreamWorks has ever created.
His impressive character design combined with Gary Oldman's outstanding voiceover brings
a genuine touch of sadness to his persona.
His sole desire for happiness, hampered by his deep-seated pride and the wounds from
his past, creates a profound contrast to Po, further emphasizing his character complexity.
A villain in every sense of the word, Lord Shen is out to wipe out every panda bear throughout
China.
Right from the get-go, that means he is attempting an act of genocide.
That’s quite a way to start off a video, and while we don’t want to spoil too much,
just know that no other villain we’re putting on trial has done anything that cruel!
Unlike many villains, however, Lord Shen does somewhat accomplish this goal, further showing
his brutality.
He isn’t much kinder to the other animals he encounters either.
He kills his henchman Boss Wolf for failing him, and destroys Thundering Rhino with a
canon.
The latter murder is part of his main goal to take over China and destroy the art of
Kung Fu once and for all.
While he fails in that second mission, he actually does manage to take over the city
for a time, making him guilty of both usurpation and treason.
His actions throughout the film, primarily against the pandas and the land of China,
also constitute a war crime charge.
If attempting to wipe out an entire species doesn’t count as that, we don’t know what
would!
Overall, Lord Shen is arguably the most dangerous adversary Po and the furious five have ever
gone up against, and is more than deserving of the death penalty.
In the premodern version of China the Kung Fu Panda films are clearly modeled after,
this punishment was carried out mainly in two ways: hanging and decapitation.
Whichever one he gets will undoubtedly be a horrid way to go out, but considering his
crimes against China, we cannot argue that they are not deserved.
CRIMES: Genocide, Murder, Usurpation, Treason, War Crimes
SENTENCING: Death Penalty
We’ve sentenced the villain, now it’s time to sentence the sidekick!
Everyone, make way for the commander of Shen’s armies, Boss Wolf!
As Lord Shen’s most trusted soldier, we can immediately mark Wolf down for aiding
and abetting.
He helps Lord Shen during his slaughter of the pandas, and he leads his army during their
war against China.
These acts make him guilty of murder, and treason, and can also constitute a war crime
charge.
From this small bit of information, it’s made very clear that Boss Wolf is a creepy
canine.
He even nearly murders a baby at one point, can you get any more evil than that?
Despite this, Boss Wolf does appear to have a bit of a conscience.
When Shen ordered him to fire the cannons, he refused to do so, arguing that it would
come at the cost of many of their soldiers.
Boss Wolf paid for this with his life in the end, but it does show that even an underling
of someone like Shen has a limit.
Because of that, Boss Wolf gets off a little easier than his master, receiving a life sentence
in prison instead.
Don’t get it twisted, Boss Wolf is still a detestable individual who deserves to spend
the rest of his life in solitude.
However, his decision to stand against Lord Shen shows that he is indeed not as evil as
he is, which gives him a slightly more lenient punishment.
At the very least, we’re sure he’ll enjoy this over meeting his end with one of Shen’s
blades!
CRIMES: Aiding and Abetting, Treason, Murder, War Crimes
SENTENCING: Life Sentence
We’re due for another trip to far, far away as we look at the foes of Shrek’s first-ever
spin-off film, the original Puss in Boots!
Although it wasn’t anywhere near as beloved as the more recent film, Puss in Boots: The
Last Wish, the original 2011 Pus sin Boots definitely had it’s moments… and it’s
villains were certainly memorable, for better or worse…
Up first is the traitorous Humpty Dumpty!
This character starts off as an ally to Puss in Boots, but as the film draws near its conclusion,
his true colors finally manifest.
While he helped Puss in his quest to find a set of magic beans, Humpty Dumpty wanted
to use them for himself, and take revenge on Puss in Boots for making a mockery out
of him.
The other villains of the film, Jack and Jill, are also in on this plan, which we believe
is grounds enough for a conspiracy charge.
And let us not forget that he did ultimately steal the magic beans, meaning he committed
theft over the course of the adventure.
While Humpty Dumpty did betray Puss, we see later in the film that he sees the error of
his ways, and begins to help him save the city of San Ricardo.
Humpty Dumpty even gives his life to do this, showing a level of heroism many redeemed villains
fail to do.
It is for that very reason that we have decided to give Humpty Dumpty our first and last pardon
of the day.
Not only did he redeem himself, but if we’re being honest, the crimes he did commit wouldn’t
even lend themselves to a harsh sentence if he didn’t atone.
Humpty Dumpty might not have survived the events of the film, but if the court of law
had anything to say about it, this egg would most definitely be a free man!
Or, egg, in this case!
CRIMES: Conspiracy, Theft SENTENCING: Pardoned
As we mentioned previously, Humpty Dumpty wasn’t alone in his plans against Puss in
Boots.
He also had help from a pair known as Jack and Jill!
Like we mentioned in Humpty’s sentencing, these two help him get revenge on Puss, which
already makes them guilty of aiding and conspiracy.
However, they then turn against Humpty Dumpty as well, as they were only using him so they
could obtain the Golden Goose and become rich off of it.
This means they don’t get the redemption Humpty got, but also that they are guilty
of both theft and animal abuse, on account of their treatment of both Puss and the Goose.
In the end, these villains don’t quite get the same amount of development as Humpty got,
but they make up for that by getting a harsher sentence.
In the case of this couple, we sentence them to twenty years in prison!
Jack and Jill might’ve gone up a hill in the original fairytale, but the only place
they’ll be heading toward at the moment is right into the slammer!
CRIMES: Aiding and Abetting, Conspiracy, Theft, Animal Abuse
SENTENCING: Twenty Years in Prison
Who’s ready for a trip to the carnival?
Well, strap in, 'cause we’re about to look at Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted!
Now, although the third Madagascar film may not have been quite as charming as the original,
we will say that its villain, arguably, was the best in the entire Madagascar franchise…
It’s time to look at an animal control officer you don’t want to mess with.
Who else could it be other than Miss Chantel DuBois?
While most animal control workers are fixated on capturing and locating wandering animals,
DuBois takes things to a whole ‘other level.
She doesn’t want to simply capture the Madagascar animals, but kill them and display them as
trophies!
Even before the events of the movie, she was anything but nice to animals.
She claims to have killed both a parrot and a goldfish at an early age, showing that she’s
capable of both animal murder and animal cruelty.
Beyond that, she’s also not exactly a fan of following the law.
She commits an act of jailbreak when she escapes a prison in Rome following her arrest, showing
that nothing will ever truly stop her hunt against animals.
It is also that motivation that earns her the death penalty.
Chantel presents a danger to animals of all kinds as long as she roams, forcing us to
give her this punishment.
It’s far from the kindest sentencing, but given all the pain and turmoil she’s inflicted
on the animal kingdom for essentially her entire life, it’s certainly a justified
one!
CRIMES: Murder, Animal Cruelty, Jailbreak SENTENCING: Death Penalty
We have but one more film to look at today, and it’s 2012’s adventure fantasy Rise
of the Guardians!
Definitely one of the more unique choices for a Dreamworks Animation story…
Rise of the Guardians is maybe one of the more forgotten films in the library.
But there’s no denying it had a really interesting antagonist…
Ladies and gentlemen, let us welcome the appropriately named Pitch Black to the stand!
In a film full of iconic childhood fantasy characters, Pitch Black fills the role of
the film’s version of the boogeyman.
He wants complete and total control over children and their dreams, as well as to weaken the
powers of the only people who can stop his plan, the Guardians.
That first mission makes him guilty of child abuse, but there are many more layers to the
second objective.
His battles against the Guardians see him kidnap the Tooth Fairy’s fellow fairies,
attempt to kill them, and actually succeed in killing the Sandman.
His plans eventually fail, but while Pitch Black can never truly die in the film’s
universe due to fear always being a necessity, the rules of the real world won’t see things
that way.
Rather unsurprisingly, Pitch Black earns himself the death penalty.
Pitch is, alongside Lord Shen, the only villain here today to actually kill a named character,
so it only seems appropriate that he be given the same punishment he was given.
Given that this is a character who’s easily the most powerful and fantastical of any we’ve
looked at in this installment, it’s debatable how it would be carried out.
Nevertheless, Pitch is likely going to endure quite the nightmare!
CRIMES: Child Abuse, Kidnapping, Attempted Murder, Murder
SENTENCING: Death Penalty
But let us know in the comment section below if you agree with our sentencing… and tell
us what your sentences would be.
Make sure to hit that notification bell; we’ll see you next time!