Shows where the Henchmen is smarter than the main villain?

[a_freak_iam]

What are some shows where the henchmen or "second-in command" is actually smarter than the main villain? GI Joe comes to mind, if Destro or Zartan or even Storm Shadow ran Cobra they wouldnt be stopped so easily, as they were much more serious and didnt rely on boasting or arrogance (though Resolute did wonders for CCs character). Baxter Stockman (2003 version) also comes to mind.

 

[BiGsIsOfQuAdS]

Does Dr. Girlfriend count?

 

[69chrger]

The butler from the X's

 

[mamaluna]

On "Pok?mon", I've always seen Nyasu as being smarter than Musashi and Kojirou, or at least that's what he seems to think. He's not technically a henchman, but he does get stuck with a lot of the grunt work in their schemes, and he acts somewhat like a Greek chorus to his human compatriots' fumbling machinations. He's a Pok?mon, after all, but he can speak and walk upright, something no other Nyasu can do; thus, he's got kind of a superiority complex and a rather negative view of human nature, seeing himself as the more intelligent species.

Or maybe I'm reading too much into this. I do tend to give the "Pok?mon" characters much more deeply-layered psyches than the writers ever intended them to have.

 

[corbaire]

Oh yeah, how can i forget Harley Quinn, who did what Joker never could, catch Batman.

 

[Kyleee]

General Specific's assistant, Private Public, from the gone-far-too-soon Sheep In The Big City.

 

[whinifred_20]

I never really watched Kim Possible, but wasn't Shego much smarter than Drakken?

 

[Kunmui]

Definitely!

Whether Harley Quinn was smarter than the Joker kind of depended on how the Joker was portrayed.

 

[Kody J]

I always had Meowth pegged as the leader of the trio, moreso in later seasons.

 

[draketitans]

Of course I'm going to mention Mr. Butlertron, though he's a robot... I wouldn't say Skudworth is dumb though just... crazy...... WEEEEESLEEEEEY.

 

[Super Band Fan]

Dr. Girlfriend technically isn't a henchman. She's more like the Monarch's second-in-command.

On that note, would 21 and 24 fall in that category?

 

[R.R. {Insert Quote Here}]

That's true. Shego was the first character to come to mind after I saw the thread title.



That's an interesting theory into Meowth's personality and role in the group. I definitely agree about how, because of being able to speak like a human, he has kind of a superiority complex. He often does come up with the plans, works them out with mostly James' help, and then it all falls down at the end. I'm not sure if he's smarter than Jessie and James, but he does act like it sometimes.

As for Harley Quinn, I'm not sure if I would say that she's smarter than the Joker. The only time that she did act smarter than him, or at least had a better plan than he did, was in Mad Love. The Joker is insane, but I thought that he was also really smart at the same time.

 

[Kunmui]

Shego was the first to come to my mind as well.

 

[Euan G]

I didn't see much of the Aladdin TV show, but wasn't Abis Mal's henchmen more compatent than him?

 

[Aok706]

Well about Stockman that's questionable at best. As neither Shredder or Agent Bishop are idiots, no both are quite smart and compitent. While he is smarter then Shredder when it comes to science, and maybe a little better then Bishop at genetics (Though Bishop was no slough himself)

Anyway Shego is the first "henchman" to come to mind.

 

[kija]

I'd say Bebop and Rocksteady in only 1 ep. In The Big Rip-Off, Shredder and Krang thought the two would fail ripping off power for the Technodrome, but they actually succeeded.