Heroes always seem to prevail over their villains in animated series. Jerry always outran Tom in their (literal) cat-and-mouse game, while the Road Runner always had the victory "meep meep" against Wile E. Coyote in Looney Tunes. This fall, The Simpsons announced that Sideshow Bob will finally kill Bart Simpson, finally giving a win to cartoon villains everywhere. Exec producer Al Jean revealed the shocking news at the ATX Television Festival in Texas this weekend, but he also added that this victory will occur during The Simpsons' alternate universe "Treehouse Of Horror" Halloween specials, so don't worry Simpsons fans, Bart won't stay dead — but hey, a win is a win, right? Because there are so many animated villains I wish could at least win once over their nemesis.
"I'm one of those people who always wanted the coyote to eat the Road Runner," Jean told Entertainment Weekly 's EW Radio at the festival. "I hated frustration comedy, so this will scratch that itch in the Halloween show, which is very funny." The erudite Sideshow Bob, voiced by Kelsey Grammer, has been hellbent on getting revenge against Bart on-screen since the 1993 episode "Cape Feare." Why? In the 1990 episode "Krusty Gets Busted," Bart figures out that his beloved hero Krusty the Klown didn't rob the Kwik-E-Mart as everyone believed — it was Sideshow Bob dressed as Krusty. And Bob got sent to jail, where he vowed revenge on the eldest Simpson child. During the next two decades, he would not be successful — until now.
I think Jean is right. While it's fun to watch worlds where good always triumphs over villains, it can be frustrating. It's never like that in the real world — so-called "bad" people win all the time. So here are some cartoon bad guys I'd love to see get at least one win over their nemeses.
Wile E. Coyote
When I was a kid, I always felt kinda bad for the poor coyote. He would put so much work into trying to defeat the Road Runner and he always lost. We should give the guy a break at least once.
Dr. Claw
Dr. Claw never defeated his nemesis Inspector Gadget — or ever showed his face — but he always promised, "I'll get you next time, Gadget. Next time."
Carmen Sandiego
I always thought Carmen Sandiego was the coolest — except for the whole stealing thing. But she got to travel all over the world incognito and taught kids about geography and history through cartoons, game shows, and video games. Just once though, could we let her be and not interrupt her super cool villainy?
Gargamel
The evil wizard always tried to capture those smurfin' Smurfs, but to no avail. How about we give him just one Smurf? He'd then realize the little blue ones are just OK.
Trix Rabbit
That poor rabbit. All he wanted was some Trix cereal, but the kids always foiled him, because "Silly rabbit, Trix are for kids." It's 2015, so we can make Trix for rabbits now, right?
Elmer Fudd
The good ol' hunter never won when it came to Rabbit Season or Duck Season — but Daffy always got his beak in a tizzy with Fudd's shotgun. Bugs Bunny somehow often evaded the bullets. Perhaps Bugs could take one for the team just once during Rabbit Season.
Image: Fox
