Following on from Meet the Robinsons, my book tells me that the next entry is ‘Mickey and Friends’. That’s multiple movies and technically there’s some villains in there, but they are just goofy versions (pun intended, hyuk) of villains in other works.
Next is Moana. There’s no Big Bad Evil Guy there. Monsters galore, and a great adventure, but no one’s stepping up to be the main bad guy in this adventure.
Which means I get to talk about Monsters Inc. This is an interesting one, because there’s definitely a bad guy in this, but they’re not fully filling the role of ‘villain of the story’. This is not an adventure tale or heroes’ journey. The villain(s) in this case aren’t nice people… monsters… but they only really fill the villain role because of actions taking by the protagonists.
It also strains the ‘Henchmen’ aspect of our little discussion here. The main protagonist is only loosely henching for the BBEG/mastermind, and has their own objectives and motives.
Spoilers ahead.
Presence – 3 out of 5
Disney villains stumble on the road to greatest TTRPG villain for a lack of exposure. Without being present in your Table Top Game, it’s hard to have presence. Famous Dungeons & Dragons villains like Strahd invite the players to his castle from the get-go, and if they decline, he has ways of sending goons or showing up unannounced to remind the heroes who’s in charge.
So whether or not your villain is a full, out-and-proud bad guy from the start, or revealed as the Big Bad Evil Guy in the Third Act, they need to have reasons to show up. There’s not a lot of need for Henry J. Waternoose III to turn up in most of this tale. He’s running an empire, with his many busy bodies running around for him.
When present, Waternoose is a fun character. He’s a charming, older monster with a wholesome streak. Proud and encouraging of the protagonist, with decent sense of humour. An authoritarian with a softer touch. When the evil turn comes, it’s quite intense and surprisingly physical.
Of all the monsters, his design is one of the most impressive. The many limbs, far too many claw-fingers give him a frightening form when he turns the charm off, but his broad form gives him a roly-poly stature that adds to his charm in calmer situations.
Atmosphere – 3 out of 5
A tricky one to grade. On the one hand, Waternoose is not influencing the human or monster worlds, neither does his appearance change the landscape with his arrival.
However, one could argue that a significant amount of this world is shaped by Waternoose, because the factory, a significant portion of the games landscape, exists because of him. His is the CEO, and has seemingly been in charge of how things are formed and carried out for a very long time. He is Monsters Inc.
Had he got away with his plan to extract screams more directly, the whole landscape of the industry would have shifted.
Omniscience – 3 out of 5
A very switched on antagonist. As mentioned above, this guy has been running a huge, successful business for a long time, and shows that he knows how everything works (he knows exactly which door to send Sully through).
He also understands, better than most, that the business needs to change tact or start failing. He chooses a terrible, evil tact, but still.
On the other hand, he has no idea that there’s a baby in his ‘realm’ and falls for some incredibly obvious lies.
Henchmen – 3 out of 5
So sifting through everyone that works for him, the title of Henchmen really falls to Randall, and those guys in yellow hazmat suits. Googling… The CDA is what they are called.
The Child Detection Agency are henchmening… henching… being henchmen for Waternoose as long as the goal is to capture and dispose of the errant child. Whatever form that disposal would have taken (best not to think about it), they demonstrate a certain level of competency marred by the need to comedic errors.
Randall is a great villain, henchmen or otherwise. Creepy, dangerous and malicious. And a good amount of petty too. He’s not loyal though, there’s no reason to stick up for Waternoose.
Threat Level – 2 out of 5
If we’re playing humanoid characters, a monster like Waternoose would be bad news. But this is a monster world full of monsters, so if your Players are playing Monster Characters, this monster loses his monster advantage.
He is strong though. We only see him throw one strike, but he sends big ol’ Sully sprawling.
Finale – 2 out of 5
“Engineered Public Confession”. I learnt this phrase because, as I was writing this post. I pondered how many movies/shows end with the villain monologuing whilst the heroes record, air or present this truth to an unseen audience. It has it’s own term. Monsters Inc. isn’t even the only animated Disney movie where this occurs.
D&D finales often end in a fight. Most TTRPGs do, but there is some merit in a non-combat ending. Charm and deception to get the villain to out themselves could be an interesting and poignant end. Especially in a world full of civilised monsters; not fighting a monster makes a lot of sense.
Having said that, it’s a very brief and lowkey ending. Poignant is good for an audience watching a movie, but his ending lacks agency. A brief chase and an impromptu performance. With more than two players there will be some heroes left with a lack of things to do.
Final Score = 2.66
I couldn’t think of anything else for this one. He’s a big crab man with a mean swing. This fits that bill.
It’s going to get harder and harder to get on the leaderboard in the second half of the list. Serious powers, supreme henchmen, a spectacular third act, or all of the above are required.
Next time, I believe (I hope), we have a contender for the top 10. He’s one of my very favourite Big Bads, so I’m hoping he makes the cut. I shall, of course, remain unbiased.
| Disney Villain | Score |
| Ursula | 4.16 👑 |
| Hades | 4.00 |
| Jafar | 3.83 |
| Professor Ratican | 3.66 |
| Lyle Tiberius Rourke | 3.66 |
| Billy Pine, a.k.a Syndrome | 3.33 |
| Elsa of Arendelle | 3.16 |
| Hopper | 3.16 |
| Robert Callaghan | 3.00 |
| The Horned King | 3.00 |
Thank You For Reading
The other Disney BBEG contenders are right here.
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