User blog:Justsomeordinarydude/Could a villain work in The Loud House?

Loud House Discussion: Could a villain work in The Loud House?

By popular demand (and by that, I mean a win by 4 votes), my next topic for discussion is whether or not a villain has the capacity to function in the show. Going back a few months, when I first posted my season 3 wish list (justsomeordinarydude.deviantar…), one of the more debated requests of mine was whether or not my original proposal of introducing a villainous or antagonistic presence would actually work. While some welcomed and praised the concept, there were some critiques concerning the very use of a villain.

The Type of Show The Loud House Is…

A central argument consisted of how stories are harder to write when there isn’t a central villain or antagonist. Essentially, this argument alludes to the notion that stories can be far more intricately written and directed, multi-layered, interesting and fulfilling to the characterisation if the writers don’t simply opt towards utilising a basic hero vs villain type of narrative. In theory, there is a sense of validity towards this claim. Sometimes the presence of a villain is either unfitting, damaging, or pointless when it comes to telling certain stories or fulfilling particular types of character arcs. In a show like The Loud House, then, the presence of a villain could be a potentially horrific problem, because overuse or obscenely large focus aimed at the presence of a villainous entity could detract from the strengths of the show’s setup and status. I think we can all agree, the greatest virtue of The Loud House is how it revolves around the relationship between 11 siblings, all with varying personalities and interests, living together, interacting and sometimes conflicting with one another. This virtue should continue to be prioritised by the writers, and maintain primary focus in episodes yet to come. The show is very much about these siblings, and the happenings which transpire between them and how they react to them. Lincoln, Lori, Leni, Luna, Luan, Lynn, Lucy, Lana, Lola, Lisa and Lily are all really fun, enjoyable to watch and genuinely likeable (for the most part) characters who share a very rich and interesting, as well as charming and lovable relationship with each other. Seeing them interact, bond, work off each other’s quirks and shticks, fall out, make-up, work together as well as against each other, and just being themselves under their insane roof is exactly why the show appeals to so many people; from children to even some teens and adults. The very strength of this show rests in how there are so many great stories, including both those already created as well as those possible for the future, which can be told revolving around these colourful characters and their relationship dynamics.

Sure, not all stories focusing on conflicts and struggles between the sibling group are pitch perfect (there are plenty of hated and panned episodes from the first 2 seasons to back up that claim), but overall, there is plenty of merit to be utilised with this show. As such, the main focus should remain on the dynamic between the siblings (and to a lesser extent, the established supporting cast), as there are so many brilliantly complex and intriguing, as well as emotionally powerful and potently entertaining narratives and moments which can be generated from it. While stories can be harder to write when a clear villain is not present, successful attempts can result in exceptionally deep, intricate, multi-layered and competently complicated stories being dished out which create and demonstrate powerful and thought provoking conflictual scenarios featuring our main characters. This then enables the best in the main characters to emerge to the surface.

But this doesn’t mean there cannot be SOME room for a villain to make their presence felt in the show. Sure, The Loud House very much deals with Slice of Life stories revolving around seemingly mundane or everyday concepts (yet stylistically simple ones which allow for great use of exaggeration and creativity in order for surprisingly fun and clever directions and decisions to stem from them) such as one sister learning to pass her driving test (Driving Miss Hazy), two siblings bunking together after a fight (Space Invader), the sibling group clashing over who gets to sit in a particular seat in the family van (The Sweet Spot), or otherwise. Seemingly common tales which are relatively relevant toward and resembling of real life occurrences. While there have been minor antagonists in the show (Flip, Chandler, Luan in the April Fools episodes, and some of the other sisters in various stories to an extent even), the presence of an actual villain (and I emphasise the important of the distinction between antagonist, as in rival or nuisance, and villain, as in legitimately dangerous and vile threat) seems almost too unfitting for this type of show.

How a Villain Could Fit in the Show

Just where would a villain fit into the show? The Loud House is about a sibling group bonding, quarrelling and co-operating through a continuing series of mishaps and shenanigans, engaging in entertaining slice of life style stories while providing the audience with its fair share of comedic and enjoyable moments. A villain would seem to be a ludicrous, out of place element in this type of show. How can you write a villain into a story synopsis such as “Lincoln and his sisters spend all day relaxing in the house as mom and dad are away” in a way that makes sense and isn’t bafflingly random and out of nowhere?

Well, the truth is, you don’t. Well, I guess that’s not technically true, strictly speaking. If they’re a very basic villain, such as a shop thief with a gun, then they could very easily be slotted into an episode of a slice of life show (E.g. an episode of The Loud House could be about Lincoln and some of his sisters being at the mall and in one of the stores, some of them get caught in an attempted robbery). But when I think about how the show could utilise the usage of a villainous presence, I am thinking of a bad guy whose a bit more dynamic than that. A true supervillain (as in, someone with great power and ambition, and someone who has big plots to rule the world/country/city/town/local area/etc, who loathes the hero with a passion and has a bunch of mooks,etc.) is something which seems completely distant when it comes to The Loud House. But here’s the thing. A villain could function, not in the regular slice of life episodes, but rather in special stories which are designed to focus on hero vs villain conflicts. A perfect example of a show that does this is My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. In that series, the vast majority of episodes will consist of narratives such as two characters having a disagreement over something, or a group of them meeting up in a designated area and having fun. There is even an episode called Slice of Life in that show. But usually twice a season or so, there will be big, epic two-parters which focus on the main cast facing off against a powerful threat. The seasons openers and finales are usually when these stories will take place. By doing this, the series can still have its fair share of epic feeling, high stakes stories where the heroes can triumph against a villain, without sacrificing its primary focus on tales about everyday scenarios and minor quarrels. When I think of how TLH could be use a villain, I think of it adopting a similar approach. By all means, the primary focus and priority of the show should be to maintain making episodes based around conflicts and mis happenings between the sibling group. This is where the charm of the show lies and also where the most potential for intricately designed, interesting character-driven narratives and character arcs can not only occur but fulfil their full potential. But until still, perhaps once or twice a season, the writers could deviate from that status quo and give us something different. Every now and again, we could be dealt with a high stakes story featuring Lincoln and/or some of the other main cast members (or all of them) facing off against a collective threat, and bonding together and showing how much they care for each other and how far they will go to help one another in times of peril. It certainly would be something a little different and a refreshing change of pace from the content we’re usually given, and it would be a chance to portray the strengths of the relationship between the main characters, and present them in a positive light (and for some of the characters, that may actually be a decent change as opposed to their usual misrepresentation; you probably can guess which characters I’m talking about).

Approaching the Option with Caution

I do understand if anyone has any cautious mindsets regarding the introduction of a villain in The Loud House. Sometimes a villain can reduce an interesting and well-written narrative conflict into a simple, cliché hero vs villain battle. There are probably many notable examples in the realm of fiction, but I’m going to use an example that quickly comes to mind. Recently, I’ve been re-watching old episodes of the DCAU’s (awesome animated universe, btw) Justice League/JLU, which naturally features a lot of hero vs villain plot scenarios. But there was one continuous story arc which really struck me as well-made, intricately developed, multi-layered and morally ambiguous, and especially interesting and thought provoking (not to mention, it really analysed both the virtues and vices of the main heroes as the arc naturally highlighted strong and convincing arguments against both their own personal vices, such as Superman’s inability to prevent Lex Luthor play him for a fool when pretending to be a reformed citizen during his Presidential campaign, as well as the League’s role and possible mis-use of their power on a more overall basis). The League vs Cadmus conflict was intriguing and particularly well written because it presented a different type of narrative for superhero shows at the time. Cadmus was by no means an angelic group, but it had some very valid and justifiable points, and it wasn’t as simple as pinning it down to good vs evil. It was far more beautifully complex than that. Until the final episode of the arc, where Luthor is revealed to be behind everything, and Brainiac is revealed to be the man behind the man, residing in Luthor’s body and subtly influencing his actions. The final episode, Divided We Fall, while certainly feeling epic and containing its fair share of awesome moments, was a little disappointing in a contextual sense, as it took everything the show built up to and tossed it aside so the arc could be resolved by a simple good vs evil battle against Luthoriac. While I still personally enjoyed the finale, it did oversimplify the conflict and lead to some disappointing, anticlimactic endings which I can understand might have been disliked by some. After that, Cadmus pretty much faded away and they barely appeared at all in the final season of the series.

Could a similar fate infect The Loud House if it begins to utilise villainous entities in its plots? Possibly, if the utilisation is improper, such as if the villain/s is/are overused to the point of the show trying to be something its not. Sometimes, a story can be better if the antagonist is not purely evil or cruel. 11 Louds a Leapin, the most praised episode of the series thus far, is a prime example. Mr Grouse, the episode’s antagonist, is not a villain in any sense of the word. A little grouchy and cranky, sure, but ultimately he’s just an old neighbour who doesn’t appreciate some of the Loud’s antics, and confiscates their property once it arrives on his. Also, it is worth noting that Lincoln was technically breaking and entering his house in that story, so if he did react more harshly, he would certainly have had justifiable reason to do so. Mr Grouse may be angry and may seem unpleasant, but his attitude was made understandable given his loneliness and isolation from the rest of his family, all the while living next to a large household full of chaotic children. Mr Grouse was not purely a bad guy, while Lincoln and the Louds are not exactly saints. But that’s part of where the strength of the story came in. Through conflicting with each other, the Louds and Mr Grouse come to understand each other, as well as develop some genuinely positive platonic feelings towards each other. Through their newfound friendship, the Louds and friends come over and celebrate Christmas with Grouse. That lead to one of the most heart-warming resolutions in the show’s run so far. Had the story simply been about the Louds combatting an unpleasant neighbour, and Grouse was portrayed as a truly vile and irredeemable evil douche, the episode likely wouldn’t have been nearly as strong (think two households constantly one-upping each other until there is a winner; that is likely the approach the writers would have took to this story had they have opted to go with a simple good guy vs bad guy direction when creating the episode).

A Tattler’s Tale is another good example. Lola may seem like an enfant terrible, but really, she’s just a little kid feeling left out. The episode proved she has a conscience and a sense of doing the right thing, and in spite of all her traits and actions which may make her come across as somewhat villainous or horrible upon first impression, she’s actually not like this. As of season 3, Lola is one of the most developed and progressed characters in the show. In a recent episode, No Place Like Homeschool, she was the most responsible of the siblings and the only sane woman in the group, showing more reason than any other character. Imagine her playing that role in season one. Doesn’t sound right, heh? But that just shows how much she has changed, improved and evolved through these types of stories. Stories in which she wasn’t just an evil little tyrant, but rather a 3-dimensional character, with redeemable qualities and moments to counter her vices and antagonistic features. Had A Tattler’s Tale simply made Lola out to be a villain instead of simply a jealous and spiteful yet still caring sister, such development might not have occurred. Not to mention, the episode itself may not have been as strong had the conflict made Lola out to be an irredeemable villain who just got her comeuppance (or worse still, actually succeeded in making the lives of her siblings miserable and avoiding punishment for it, making her a karma Houdini), and then she didn’t grow or evolve as a character, and we didn’t get the heart-warming ending where Lola learns it’s wrong not to tattle to her parents, while the other kids begin to accept Lola into their group after she takes the fall for their mistakes. This was an especially strong episode because it provided something greater than what it would have been had it been rendered a simply good side vs bad side story. It is a sibling conflict in which while Lola is clearly an antagonist, she is not a villain. She has positive traits which not only made her stance clear and understandable (though not really excusable as she was still harshly overreacting to her siblings shutting her out of their secret confession meetings and she should have realised why they were doing so due to her tattling tendencies), but also enabled her to overcome her faults and realise she was doing wrong, and put things right in the end. In contrast, April Fools Rules is a little more controversial because it actually aims to portray Luan solely as a villainous entity in that episode. In any case, there appear to be more haters of that episode, and it was the cause of Luan becoming a bit more of a base breaker than she was beforehand (though in fairness, some actually praise the decision to have Luan play the villainous role in these episodes as they argue it adds more to her than just being a pun master like in many other stories).

Also, Shell Shock. Initially, we’re lead to believe Ronnie Anne is a chaotic and destructive individual, but we learn that despite her vices (AKA her tendency to bully Lincoln sometimes), there is a caring and nurturing soul underneath. Despite Lincoln’s imagination, RA is not simply a one-dimensional jerk or ruthless aggressor, she can be mean sometimes but there is more to it than that. The episode deals with a two-sided conflict in which both sides have justifiable P.O.V’s but neither is simply the bad guy. Given Lincoln’s previous doses of victimisation, he has every right to be concerned about Ronnie’s behaviour, but RA also has a right to have contact to the egg that she, as well as Lincoln, is supposed to be taking care of. It wasn’t simply that RA was a villainous presence who aimed to just make Lincoln’s life hell for the lulz or evulz. That would be not only horrendously simplistic but also downright lazy and a mediocre way of handling the plot. In fact, many episodes are not simply a good character being placed against a despicable one. Sometimes the protagonist can be as underhanded as the antagonist/s in a story. In The Sweet Spot, Lincoln comes across as a bit of a selfish schemer as he aims to manipulate circumstances and the thoughts and decisions of his sisters so he can obtain the best seat in the car. He has his reasons, given previous experiences he has had in worse spots, but his actions in this episode are less than morally pure, to say the least. His sisters, while acting out of their own self interest and envy, and while they do serve as antagonists who act as obstacles in Lincoln’s plan due to their own selfish desires, are just children with flaws and vices, the same as him. That story is hardly good vs bad. It’s humans (children, no less) vs other humans (also children). None are purely ‘good’ or ‘bad’ but are simply complex, relatable, flawed yet virtuous beings with aspects we can admire, in addition to make critiques of. Sometimes, a villain has no place in a story, and in a show like The Loud House, that can quite often be the case.

But that doesn’t mean a villain can never make their presence felt; that there is never a benefit to their existence. If every once in a while, the writers opt to insert a larger scale conflict driven narrative, complete with a major villain and major stakes, into a season, then that could work quite nicely. It would be a neat way to include a bad guy and shake things up a bit without interfering with or sacrificing the quality substance which makes this show so great and appealing in the first place. A villain could provide a lot of advantages if they appear sparingly. For example, when surrounded by a series of a slice of life episodes, a story in which all our main cast must work together to stop a greater threat would stand out a lot more, and it would help to make that said adventure feel all the more epic. If a villain were to pop up every now and again, when they did so, the experience would go to show that behind all the petty quarrelling, various forms of conflict and struggle, all the differences and disagreements, and all the hardship that our main characters endure, either from their own mistakes, each other or external circumstances, when the chips are down, they will always come through for each other and stand together. They will always love and care for one another and will go to great lengths to look out for and after each other, even fight to protect and save each other. Considering all the criticism some fans lay towards the show, particularly against the sisters, for supposedly not caring for Lincoln and for so much mean-spiritedness being aimed at him, a story like this may be just what the show needs to represent our main cast in a positive light, and also prove that despite those criticisms, the Louds do in fact care for and love each other, and share a healthier and stronger bond than most give them credit for.

But What Type of Villain Could Actually Work?

There are a number of different types of villains that could fit into the setup of the show. Let’s just briefly run through a number of alternate villain concepts which could somehow blend in with the show’s general eventfulness and its characters…

-          Maybe a villain such as an evil neighbour (moreso than Mr Grouse) who despises the Louds with a passion and plots extensively to rid the neighbourhood of them.

-          Perhaps another school bully (but unlike Ronnie, they are an actual malicious thug who isn’t picking on their victim out of hidden feelings for them, but rather because they are truly vile and twisted) who is more than just your typical thug, but also holds a lot of power and influence amongst the social network of all the local schools and so is a difficult adversary to face off against even when all the family are together.

-          A corrupt businessman who deals with selling houses to clients. He/she discovers that while The Loud House itself is rather broken down and filled with ‘colourful’ characters, the land it is on is actually really valuable (it could be written this is the case due to something historical occurrence that makes it valuable to eyes of some) and so they scheme to send the Louds packing by any means necessary so he can knock down the house and sell the land for an expensive price.

-          A corrupt political figure who is tasked with turning Royal Woods into a superior place to live. He/she sees the chaos that the Louds inadvertently cause and so aims to report their crimes (even exaggerate incredibly minor offences) to authorities, and even have some of the family, including the parents, arrested for various actions. Basically, they are someone who, for their own self-interest, seeks to ruin the lives of the Louds.

-          Maybe a villainous presence for any one of our main characters to deal with in particular. Perhaps when Luna tries to make it big in the world of rock and roll, someone she encounters in that line of business acts in a hostile manner towards her presence and takes devious measures to prevent her from succeeding. Perhaps there is an incredibly malicious individual going up against Lola in a pageant contest who resorts to excessively devious and destructive actions in order to defeat her, even threatening significant danger against others in order to do so. Maybe Lana encounters a poacher or someone who is killing/capturing animals for profit. Maybe Lynn goes up against an especially rough, violent, selfish and deranged sports competitor who makes even her look kind and tame in comparison, and she has to defeat them in what escalates into a very serious game (or personal war).

But enough of all those boring ideas. This is as good a time as any to pitch my idea for the type of villain I would include (if I had any input on the writing process or any creative influence at all, that is. Of course, I don’t, but a guy can dream).

My idea of a villain is a character who acts as a knight of cerebus, in that he is taken incredibly seriously and provides a legitimate threat towards our main characters. He’s someone who was once like Lincoln Loud. A rather nice and smart, sensitive little kid with a few moderately geeky interests and a tendency to sometimes get the short end of the stick in some situations. He’s older (late teens or early adult years) and so has come to reflect on this in a far more bitter and cynical manner, believing people are selfish, horrible creatures. He believes others are automatically vile and sadistic bullies by their nature based on his interpretations of previous interactions from his childhood years and his skewed perception of the world around him. His goal is to throw his weight around in the aim of ensuring nobody ever walks all over him ever again, by constantly behaving in an overly violent and hateful manner towards others. He tries to gain the following of other young troubled kids and teens to form a group (or as he views it, a syndicate) who will help him enforce his will and dominance over society. At one point, he tries to bring Lincoln into the group, as he actually comes to relate to Lincoln’s predicament as a boy who sometimes gets the 10 vs 1 type of conflict brought against him, but the boy’s good-hearted nature and cheerful ways contrast with his ambitions. When Lincoln and his family face off against this villain and his group and ultimately find a way to defeat him and foil his plans, the villain seeks vengeance, as well as turns his attention to other kids (he also takes interest in some of the other characters who could potentially aid him, such as Lisa for her scientific genius, Lola for her ruthlessness, and Lynn and Ronnie Anne for their toughness and rough attitudes). Whenever he makes his occasional appearances, the show would take a slightly darker and edgier turn (relatively speaking, that is, as this is still a kids show on Nickelodeon and so anything too over the top in this respect would be unfitting and inappropriate, so he would have to be written into stories in a way that his character would remain in tact but not go too far from deviating from the show’s usual standard). A master combatant and one to really get under the skin of our main cast, he’s a threat to be reckoned with and a presence which forces all of them to work together and prevail above their differences in order to stop him from wreaking havoc on their lives. He would also function as an effective foil for several of our main characters (Lincoln: Both are individuals who often get a lot of slack from others and a lot of people antagonising them, but Lincoln remains optimistic, happy and loving while the villain is angry, bitter and aggressive. Lori: Both try to command others, but Lori inflicts order out of a genuine concern for the control and safety of her household while the villain does it for personal gain. Lynn: Both are violent and antagonistic, but Lynn is mainly interested in sports and doesn’t mean to come across as so mean and ruthless, and actually cares about her loved ones underneath, while the villain specifically goes out of his way to crush and intimidate others, building a reputation as the most fearsome person around. Etc.).

But really, that’s just a little idea I have in mind more than anything. Leave it to me to turn a general discussion into a pitch for one of my incomplete OC concepts. But in all seriousness, a villain could work if the series if they are implemented properly. While I appreciate regular use of bad guys in a show like this may not be appropriate and may in fact be degrading, considering what the show is, remember, only a Sith deals in absolutes. Scepticism understood, I still believe there is benefit to a villain be included in the show in some shape or form. While the main priority should continue to be presenting the ever changing and evolving relationship between the siblings, the odd deviation from this norm wouldn’t be a bad move, at least in theory. I recall the episode Pulp Friction, focusing on the Louds acting as characters from Lincoln’s Ace Savvy comic book series. That was all about our main characters literally playing the part of heroes in multiple scenes as they take on various bad guys in what were really fun and enjoyable action-packed sequences. From what I recollect, that episode was among the most highly praised of season 2 and is fondly remembered by the fandom. If that is any indication, the occasional story featuring the Louds acting as heroic individuals combatting a treacherous enemy may be a heavily positive move to take. Whatever type of villainous character the writers opted to use, it could work exceedingly well, as they could provide a great foil or area of comparison for our main leads, enable the bond between the main characters to grow through unity as they fight together against said threat. They could raise the stakes and make the episodes they appear in stand out a lot more, and through triumphing against the villain, the Louds could be dealt with a number of moments in which they are able to look badass and awesome.

Final Points

If the writers do opt to include a villain in the series at any point, they ought to approach the decision to do so with reasonable levels of caution. The Loud House is a product created by Chris Savino, and another one of his most well-known works is his role as showrunner for the final 2 seasons of the original PowerPuff Girls. Those final seasons are considered generally poor television, largely due to mundane plot scenarios, gross out humour, and overall, the simple fact that a show about 3 superpowered mini-Kryptonians was rendered uninteresting and didn’t focus on the aspects that made a superhero themed show so appealing and entertaining to begin with (the enjoyable villains, cool action scenes, etc.). But the poor quality of those final seasons reflected upon the niche and specific talents and interests of Savino himself. People disliked many episodes of those final seasons because the stories leaned towards slice of life style narratives, such as the girls dealing with a peeling problem after being sunburnt. But those stories were not very fitting for a show like that. Hence why Savino found much greater success with The Loud House, where his style of writing slice of life stories was far more advantageous, given the show contained a domestic setting and was about the relationships between a large bunch of family members, as opposed to being about fighting crime and the forces of evil. While Savino is no longer affiliated with the show, due to the allegations made against his name last year, the other writers are likely in a similar boat, working on The Loud House because their niche is writing slice of life stories in a domesticated setting. They have worked on shows like The Fairly Odd Parents, which for the most part, focuses on Timmy Turner dealing with his home and school life, etc (granted, there is a certain supernatural element in the mix, that being Timmy having magical creatures helping him along his misadventures, but still…). Granted, the writers have also worked on other shows like TUFF Puppy (a comedic spy/crime fighting show) which suggests they have the ability to write stories based on good vs evil conflicts, but it would still seem they’re at their best when writing about mis-happenings between characters in a less action-packed and relatively realistic, typical setting, such as when the sisters are battling over a car seat or searching for hidden money in the house.

But I do wonder what a villain could bring to the table if they were introduced and utilised correctly in the show. Could they serve as a larger scale threat that forces the main characters to work together, and highlight that despite all the petty quarrels that come with family life, they all still love each other and have each other’s backs? Or will they just function as a source of degradation for the writing, putting an end to interesting and grey-shaded conflicts, with multiple sides and perspectives, and no clear and over-simplified right or wrong concepts being attached being present? It is intriguing to consider what effect a villain would really have on the show and if it is worth the effort of finding them a place or functioning role in the series to begin with.

One final point before wrapping up, one person stated they were interested in this topic because they wondered if Lincoln himself could wind up becoming a villain (based on the fact that he gets dealt the short straw in many stories and often finds himself the recipient of significant amounts of antagonistic treatment from the rest of his family). Here’s the thing! That estimation is based upon a gross exaggeration of the hardship our main protagonist has to deal with from story to story, as well as a misperception of how he reflects on these misfortunes as a character. While it is certainly fair to argue that Lincoln has been on the receiving end of a rather significant amount of antagonism from his siblings as well as other characters, it is far-fetched to conclude that he will ultimately become a vengeful villain as a result of it. I know certain episodes like Brawl in the Family, No Suck Luck, and to a lesser extent others like Making the Grade or Cheater by the Dozen go to deep lengths to argue against this perspective, but I would argue that for the most part, Lincoln shares a relatively healthy and passionate bond with his family. Those episodes stand out as exceptions as opposed to the norm (hence why they specifically are the targets of such much hatred and disgust from the fans) and to be perfectly honest, it’s about time we moved on from resenting them and holding a grudge against the show, its characters, and its creators because of them. Yes, those stories exist, and yes, the show would have been better off without them, but I say the best thing we can do is move past them and be thankful the writers have learned from their mistakes (seemingly so, as there has been an episode that has been that poor in this reviewer’s opinion for quite some time now). Those stories may have been poor but they didn’t need to have the damaging effect they did. If people could learn to live with them existing and just rise above their negativity, we would all contribute to the enrichment of the show’s capacity to entertain us and enhancement of our ability to enjoy it. Not to mention, improve the reputation of the fandom. Most of the time, Lincoln is not subjected to overly unfair or harsh treatment from the others. In one episode, he even had a whole damn song dedicated to him by his sisters about how awesome he is (for **** sake!). In many stories, his own vices such as mild doses of selfish intentions can cause his undoing as much as anything else, like in Making the Case, where he humiliated his sisters in front of everyone for his own popularity. Sometimes, they can even be merciful, like in Hand Me Downer, where Lynn (the most hated sibling at this time and the one people criticise as too mean and violent towards Lincoln) actually didn’t lay a finger on the boy despite him stealing and losing her expensive, customised bike. Sometimes, they will even go to great lengths to apologise to Lincoln when they screw him over (even when unintentional) and make it up to him, such as in the conclusion of Cereal Offender. All this evidence suggests the relation between Lincoln and his sisters is not as hostile or toxic as some fans may think. Additionally, Lincoln has rarely been shown to express deep anger or the capacity to hold grudges any time his sisters do hinder his plans or good time. He often acknowledges their presence and actions can make certain aspects of his life somewhat more problematic (the focus of many plots in the show, in fact, as an episode will often focus on Lincoln trying to accomplish a task such as gaining the best seat in Vanzilla or finding hidden money in the house, with his sisters acting as obstacles in context) but at no point does he ever hold grudges against them, and seems to be, overall, a very forgiving, laid back and cheerful soul who would never dream of attacking and obtaining payback against his sisters (I mean, in a serious sense, I know there’s episodes like A Fridge Too Far which show he is willing to fight back to some extent, but that “war” was mostly played for laughs and consisted of relatively mild pranks. Certainly, I don’t think Lincoln has it in him to actively seek to harm, injure or break his sisters to any severe or serious extent). In fact, recalling the villain I said I had in mind earlier, one major reason that made him such an effective foil to Lincoln was how unlike Lincoln, when he was dealt with antagonism from others, he did hold a grudge (against the world, pretty much) and is someone likely to exact payback in extreme ways, as opposed to the more forgiving and loving Lincoln Loud. Granted, maybe Lincoln could play the villain for an episode or story arc (or maybe one of the sisters or the group as whole could, too) if the writers ever wanted to take a darker and edgier turn and portray the sibling conflict in a far more serious and even tragic light, but that isn’t an especially likely scenario. As it stands, the evidence doesn’t really compel me to believe that Lincoln will become a villain any time in the future (and even if that does happen down the road, will it necessarily enhance the quality of the storytelling or the show as a whole in any way?). Besides, part of the appeal and charm behind his character is how kind-hearted, happy, optimistic and even thick-skinned he is, taking a lot of bull from many other characters and still maintain that same cheerful child personality regardless (of course, he’s not a saint or anything, he has been shown to get irritated an frustrated at times, as well as selfish when he really wants something, but overall, he’s a pretty good kid and certainly doesn’t seem to be the kind of guy who’s “one lab accident away from becoming a supervillain” or anything).

Overall, those are all my thoughts on how the role of a super-villain could be implemented into The Loud House, and all the associated benefits and risks of including one, from this particular perspective. But now I’ll promote a discussion and ask you guys. Do you think The Loud House needs a villain? Would a villain add or subtract from the quality of the show? If a villain is to be added, what type of character should they be? Do you believe Lincoln, the sisters or any other characters could become villains at some point? Get going with typing up your thoughts in the comments section below!