Villain, Antagonist, and Obstacle
When writing the plot, something will be against the main characters. The question is, is it a villain, an antagonist, or an obstacle? I didn’t understand the difference until it was explained to me, but it makes a lot of sense when explained well. The show Person of Interest has great examples of all three. If you’ve never seen it, I highly recommend watching it.
An obstacle is something that stands in the way of the main character. In Person of Interest, like in most stories focused around a vigilante, this tends to be the police. They aren’t actively out to stop the main character specifically, they’re just doing their job. They’re certainly not evil like a villain, but they do get in the way of the main character. This makes them an obstacle, but not an antagonist or a villain.
There’s a thin line between antagonist and villain. An antagonist is a character that is actively trying to stop the main characters from achieving their goal. A competing romantic interest in a romance movie is an antagonist. They’re not evil like a villain, but their wants are in opposition to those of the protagonists, making them more than an obstacle. The difference between an antagonist and a sympathetic villain is that a competing romantic interest isn’t necessarily sympathetic. We’re not supposed to like them. Going back to Person of Interest, Detective Carter starts the series as an antagonist, and a sympathetic one at that. She’s still doing her job, but she’s taken a special interest in the main characters, enough so that they have to avoid getting close to her. The detective that’s above the rest and wants to bring a vigilante to justice, arguably like Commissioner Gordon in the Batman comics, is always an antagonist.
A villain is… well, a villain. They are evil. Maybe not pure evil, but their methods are questionable at best. They probably have no issue with killing people, or are happy to get others to do it for them. The character Simmons in Person of Interest is a villain. The corrupt cop whose dealings the main characters always stop comes up often in vigilante stories as well, as do mob bosses and gang leaders whose plans the vigilante foils time and time again. Cluny the Scourge from Redwall, Visser Three from Animorphs, the Emperor from Star Wars, and Voldemort from Harry Potter are all villains.
There are a lot of ways to challenge your protagonist and create drama. Having a villain is arguably the easiest approach, but not the only one. As always, pick the approach that works best for your story. Like all tools, this is only meant to show the possibilities, not provide a mold to which your story must conform. Pick your idea, then start writing.
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