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I know the post is satire but using baldness as a feature of villains in movies is surprisingly common still. I noticed it watching Dune recently given that the

I know the post is satire but using baldness as a feature of villains in movies is surprisingly common still. I noticed it watching Dune recently given that the Harkonnens were not even bald (or specifically entirely hairless) in the books or the 1984 movie. I don't think anyone's arguing that it's the worst injustice anyone faces but it is surprisingly often used as a visual shorthand for people lacking humanity, which is pretty nasty.

steve_adams_86 4y ago
Another theme I’ve seen is that games with a bad, brutish, or scary guy as a protagonist tend to have him be bald. My sample size is too small (just my own limited gaming experience) though so this might not be true if I collected data properly.
- collegeburner 4y ago
  That makes sense, the levels of the androgens in "androgenic alopecia" they would have to get that much muscle (and that aggressive) would make Elvis go bald.
  - heywoodlh 4y ago
    > the levels of the androgens in "androgenic alopecia" they would have to get that much muscle (and that aggressive) would make Elvis go bald According to One Punch Man, the following daily exercise routine will make you bald (and more powerful than anyone else in the universe): 100 push-ups 100 sit-ups 100 squats 10 kilometer run
- jimmux 4y ago
  That can be a technical choice. Protagonists like these tend to be in games aiming for a more realistic art style, in which it's expensive to render convincing hair.
mr_toad 4y ago
A lot of cartoon villains are ‘masterminds’ and the cartoon image of a scientist or academic is also often an middle aged or older bald man. I’m not sure if hair loss is actually more common among scientists, or if it’s just correlated with age.
- robonerd 4y ago
  I think masterminds are often bald with large heads to suggest exceptional intelligence. Baldness helps show that their head really is big, not just their hairstyle.
- dTal 4y ago
  Which reveals another interesting and concerning trope: the villain gets ahead by using their intelligence, and the hero solves the problem with brute force, possibly magically augmented. Very seldom is it the other way around.
  - robonerd 4y ago
    Sounds like you want more detective stories, not superhero stories. Smart hero defeat the evil brute using his whit is a common sort of story if you know where to look, but Hollywood does seem to be on a superhero glut for the past 15-20 years. They produce a smothering amount of drivel, to the point where it's easy to forget that anything else exists.
    - dTal 4y ago
      It's not limited to superhero stories. Even the quintessential story detective, Sherlock Holmes, meets his match in a "criminal mastermind" whom he ultimately defeats with... his superior skill at wrestling. Admittedly that was some of Arthur Conan Doyle's laziest writing.

steve_adams_86 4y ago

Another theme I’ve seen is that games with a bad, brutish, or scary guy as a protagonist tend to have him be bald. My sample size is too small (just my own limited gaming experience) though so this might not be true if I collected data properly.

collegeburner 4y ago
That makes sense, the levels of the androgens in "androgenic alopecia" they would have to get that much muscle (and that aggressive) would make Elvis go bald.
- heywoodlh 4y ago
  > the levels of the androgens in "androgenic alopecia" they would have to get that much muscle (and that aggressive) would make Elvis go bald According to One Punch Man, the following daily exercise routine will make you bald (and more powerful than anyone else in the universe): 100 push-ups 100 sit-ups 100 squats 10 kilometer run
jimmux 4y ago
That can be a technical choice. Protagonists like these tend to be in games aiming for a more realistic art style, in which it's expensive to render convincing hair.

mr_toad 4y ago

A lot of cartoon villains are ‘masterminds’ and the cartoon image of a scientist or academic is also often an middle aged or older bald man. I’m not sure if hair loss is actually more common among scientists, or if it’s just correlated with age.

robonerd 4y ago
I think masterminds are often bald with large heads to suggest exceptional intelligence. Baldness helps show that their head really is big, not just their hairstyle.
dTal 4y ago
Which reveals another interesting and concerning trope: the villain gets ahead by using their intelligence, and the hero solves the problem with brute force, possibly magically augmented. Very seldom is it the other way around.
- robonerd 4y ago
  Sounds like you want more detective stories, not superhero stories. Smart hero defeat the evil brute using his whit is a common sort of story if you know where to look, but Hollywood does seem to be on a superhero glut for the past 15-20 years. They produce a smothering amount of drivel, to the point where it's easy to forget that anything else exists.
  - dTal 4y ago
    It's not limited to superhero stories. Even the quintessential story detective, Sherlock Holmes, meets his match in a "criminal mastermind" whom he ultimately defeats with... his superior skill at wrestling. Admittedly that was some of Arthur Conan Doyle's laziest writing.