God Save Us From the Queen: Difference between revisions
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{{trope}}
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If the evil queen is in charge of a [[Hive Mind]], she is by definition a [[Hive Queen]]. Also overlaps with [[Matriarchy]] (particularly the Sexist Matriarchy) and sometimes [[Evil Matriarch]].
The idea that [[Unfortunate Implications|"only a fool would want to be ruled by a woman"]] played heavily into the lives of real life queens in
In terms of the ranks of [[Authority Tropes]], the tropes that are equal are [[The High Queen]], [[The Woman Wearing the Queenly Mask]], [[She Is the King]], [[The Good King]] and [[President Evil]]. The next steps down are [[The Evil Prince]], [[Prince Charming]], [[Prince Charmless]], [[Warrior Prince]], [[The White Prince]], [[The Wise Prince]], and all [[Princess Tropes]]. The next step up is [[The Emperor]].
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== Film ==
* The Alien Queen who battled Ripley in ''[[Alien
* If the Alien Queen goes in here, then the [[Star Trek: First Contact|Borg Queen]] does too.
* The "Demon Queen" Bavmorda, from the movie and novel ''[[Willow]]''.
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** Tywin Lannister is far more evil than Cersei, precisely because he's no sociopath. He uses psychopaths such as Gregor Clegane or Amory Lorch on purpose. Cersei is, however, following on Daddy's footsteps. And there are very good examples of reigning women. Lady Olenna Tyrell is far from psychopathic, and Lysa Tully, while undoubtedly wasted and losing the plot, does manage to keep the Vale out of conflict and prospering during her time as Lady Arryn.
** Fortunately, Cersei {{spoiler|starts to run herself into the ground the second the checks on her power are removed and, three books later, has been arrested for treason, adultery, and incest by the very [[Church Militant]] [[Hoist by His Own Petard|she resurrected.]] Nice going, Cersei.}}
* The Queen of the Elves in the [[Discworld]] novel ''[[Discworld/Lords and Ladies|Lords and Ladies]]''. Subverted somewhat in that the King of the Elves, with whom she doesn't get along too well, actually has the same
** Lady Felmet from the earlier novel ''[[Discworld/Wyrd Sisters|Wyrd Sisters]]'' ought to qualify as well; she actually secures her position as queen by having her frail-minded husband Duke Felmet murder the King of Lancre, then proceeds to rule the kingdom with an iron fist from behind her husband (since the character is a parody of [[Macbeth|Lady Macbeth]] (See Theater, below), this is hardly surprising).
** Lilith Weatherwax, who rules over Genua in ''[[Discworld/Witches Abroad|Witches Abroad]]'' with an iron fist and makes sure that [[Happiness Is Mandatory]]. Anyone who isn't smiling and quiet, or doesn't abide by typical story archetypes, are fed to stories.
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** The Lady of the Green Kirtle from ''The Silver Chair'' is sometimes called the Queen of Underland, though given how her "subjects" were basically gnomes that she kidnapped, brainwashed, and enslaved and her "kingdom" was more or less a palace under the ground, it's uncertain how certifiable her claims for the title are. Still, she would have become that had her plan succeeded.
* In the ''[[Nightrunner|Tamír Trilogy]]'', Queen Agnalain of Skala fit this trope, since she became so paranoid she was about to have her son and ''baby daughter'' executed for treason (after having numerous others killed), but she's treated as an aberration in a long line of warrior queens and her son killing her in self-defense and then taking the throne instead of his sister is presented as even ''worse'', since the god in charge [[Double Standard|only approves of female rulers]]. Up to you whether this is an aversion or a straight example.
* The [[H.P. Lovecraft|Lovecraftian]] version of Queen Victoria presented in [[Neil Gaiman]]'s ''[[A Study in Emerald]]'' is a particularly [[
{{quote|''She was called Victoria, because she had beaten us in battle, seven hundred years before, and she was called Gloriana, because she was glorious, and she was called the Queen, because the human mouth was not shaped to say her true name.''}}
* Played with in [[Fred Saberhagen]]'s ''Swords'' and ''Lost Swords'' series. Even though Kristin's father held the title of King, Kristin rules Tasavalta as Princess Regnant, not as Queen. Yambu, of course, holds the title of Queen, and is a bad guy, but abdicates her throne after she does a [[Heel Face Turn]].
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* [[Invoked Trope|Invoked]], sort of, in [[Robin Hobb]]'s ''Farseer'' and ''Tawny Man'' trilogies, where during the time between them, Kettricken has been a fair, just, and intelligent queen overseeing a time of much-needed peace for the Six Duchies... But because she's a foreigner who was married for political reasons, and her husband is dead, her political enemies ''love'' to spread these kinds of rumors about her.
** Queen Desire, who was queen at the beginning of the first book, is a decidedly unpleasant if minor character. Kettricken escapes being evil through the "princess first" clause, as she doesn't marry a king till the very end of ''Assassin's Apprentice''.
* Mostly averted in [[Wheel of Time]]: there are many female rulers, some of them bad, some of them good, just as the male rulers. Actually, there are more good female rulers than good male
** The one brief time during which Andor had a king was not a great experience. First of all, the said king was an [[Evil Sorcerer]].
* [[Tamora Pierce]] both subverts this and plays it straight: Queen Thayet of Tortall is a progressive, level headed queen who's perfectly willing to get her hands dirty (and destroy expensive dresses (and her modesty (see the howler monkey incident)) in the process). Princess [[Unfortunate Name|Imajane Jimajen]], the regent of the Copper Isles in ''Trickster's Queen'' is ruthless, mentally unstable, and {{spoiler|arranges the murders of the six-year-old King Dunevon and his similarly aged heir Elsren, so she can take the throne}}. Her successor, {{spoiler|Dove}}, is implied to be another subversion of this trope.
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** In the New Testament, when Herod Antipas asks his unnamed stepdaughter (Christian tradition and some historical evidence indicates it as "Salome") to name any reward ("up to half his kingdom") for her dancing, her mother suggests [[Hermit Guru|"John The Baptist's]] [[Squick|Head on a Platter"]], thus trope-naming a popular expression. In both cases it's claimed that Herod Antipas enjoys John's preaching and is only forced to have him killed because he gave his word to a treacherous woman.
** There are good queens, though: such as Bathsheba, Esther, and the Book of Revelations implies {{spoiler|Mary (Jesus' mother)}}.
*** Vashti, the queen of Persia whom Esther would replace, was considered necessary to replace because she [[Stop Being Stereotypical|wouldn't obey her husband's orders]] and [[Double Standard|display her beauty before his guests]]. [[Values Dissonance|For this she was considered a bad woman]] and
* Arthur's sister, Morgan, is married to King Uriens in Twain's ''A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court''. She kills a young servant for bowing too low and accidentally touching her knee. She continues to entertain her guests as the servants clean up the mess left after she stabs the boy.
** Death isn't the only [[Disproportionate Retribution]] she deals out. When a peasant slights her, she takes him from his wife and five children and locks him up in her dungeon for twenty-two years, giving him a view of his house from his cell. She then orchestrates five fake funerals at intervals, leaving him to agonize over which of his family still lives. His crime? Saying she had [[Evil Redhead|red hair]].
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== Toys ==
* In on of ''[[Bionicle]]'''s many [[Alternate Universe|side-dimensions]], Toa Tuyet, a corrupted female Toa [[Alternate History|managed to take over the world]], turning it [[Mirror Universe|upside-down]]. While not necessarily a "queen", she did rule over her universe with a trope-fitting evilness.
** And if her plan had succeeded, probably Roodaka would have become something
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* Oddly enough {{spoiler|Merlina}} in [[Sonic the Hedgehog|Sonic and the Black Knight]]. [[The Reveal]] that {{spoiler|she arranged the whole thing so that she could preserve the kingdom forever in a twisted state}} and [[Kick the Dog|sheer ruthlessness she had in achieving this goal]] was the most shocking moment in the series.
* Queen Arshtat Falenas of [[Suikoden V]]. She's nice so long as she's not going [[With Great Power Comes Great Insanity|insane]] from bearing the Sun Rune. Which is basically every time she acts as a monarch and not as a mom. And being a Queendom, of course, the Queendom of Falena has been in a state of near or outright-civil war for a few generations. {{spoiler|Though it's more stable after the end of the game with Lymsleia as queen, though.}}
** Among the back stories, the Queens before Arshtat had an assassination
* ''[[Mortal Kombat]] 3'' gave us Edenia's Queen Sindel, who was resurrected by [[Big Bad]] Shao Khan into doing evil things. She changed sides afterwards and is now on the side of good along with he daughter Kitana, making this something of a subversion.
** {{spoiler|Not so much in the reboot when Shao Kahn purposely gave most of Shang Tsung's strength to her, making her brutally kill the majority of the Forces of Good and was only stopped by Nightwolf's [[Heroic Sacrifice]].}}
* The reclusive Queen Himiko from ''[[Okami]]''. Given that the player character [[Physical God|is the sun goddess Amaterasu]], this seems to be a [[Exactly What It Says on the Tin|''literal'']] case of
* The Empress Endora from ''[[Ogre Battle]]: March of the Black Queen''.
* Another aversion: Queen Gwendolyn in ''[[Puzzle Quest]]: Challenge of the Warlords'' is, by all appearances, a benevolent ruler.
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* ''[[Gears of War]]'': The Locust Queen
* Appears [[Rule of Three|three times]] in ''[[Dragon Quest III]]'':
** One of the scenarios that can determine the hero's personality in the [[Updated Rerelease
** The Elf Queen is a big fan of [[Disproportionate Retribution]]: when her daughter [[Star-Crossed Lovers|falls for a human]], she forbids them to see one another; when they elope, she promptly curses his hometown to eternal, unaging slumber. [[Can't Argue with Elves|She sees absolutely nothing wrong with this]].
** Meanwhile, Zipangu is led by Himiko, who encourages her followers to keep [[Dying Like Animals]] and [[Human Sacrifice|sacrificing young girls to the]] [[Orochi]]. She refuses to entertain even the thought of trying to slay the beast... and when the heroes try, they discover {{spoiler|that Himiko ''is'' the Orochi}}.
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* ''[[Girl Genius]]'': It's implied that Albia, the 'undying Queen' of Britain may be an example of this, although the only British character to appear so far is Ardsley Wooster, who's on her side (so far as we know) and wouldn't say anything to support this idea.
** Lucrezia could probably be nominated for this role as well - she was married to THE Heterodyne, and even better a ''beloved'' Heterodyne (instead of the usual 'feared') -- but outside of popular stories told by the public, she [http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20110316 was not well thought of, particularly by the staff]. She also was The Mad Scientist's Beautiful Daughter and had her own powerful Sparky gifts, although the details on those are still fuzzy on the reader's end yet.
* [[Genius Ditz|Jim]] as [[Star Wars|Padme Admidala]] in ''[[Darths and Droids]]'', although Padme is no longer Queen of Naboo when he takes over, turning this into
* ''[[Homestuck]]'' has a particularly nasty Black Queen of Derse. Ignores the battle that's raging on Skaia, lets her agents go unchecked, pretty much lets her own king be slaughtered... oh, and she forces ''[[Knight of Cerebus|JACK]] [[Omnicidal Maniac|NOIR]]'' ''[[Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking|to put on funny outfits.]]'' It didn't end well for her.
** Averted with the [[Good Counterpart|White Queen]], though. She isn't seen much in any incarnation, but when she does appear she's always gracious, level-headed and competent. In the [[Alternate Universe|Alpha session]], she even [[Mama Bear|stops Jack from murdering Jane]] by [http://www.mspaintadventures.com/?s=6&p=006500 smashing him in the face with her staff.]
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== Western Animation ==
* Played straight and subverted in ''[[Gargoyles]]''. Lady Titania is one of the series' few benevolent [[The Fair Folk|Fair Folk]], and was second in command only to Lord Oberon. He, despite sometimes meaning well, claiming to be fair and honorable, and trying to be considerate towards mortals, is nonetheless arrogant and drunk with power. Of course when a human notes that in Avalon, the Fair Folk's homeland, Oberon is always right, Titania notes that such a statement would be true, if not for the fact that Oberon is married. [[Word of God]] also has stated that Titania was once much less benevolent than Oberon, that it was ''her'' bad behavior part that got the entire race banished from Avalon for 1000 years, and that Queen Mab, Oberon's batshit insane mother, was even worse than them both. Even the Fair Folk are mostly glad she got overthrown.
* Most Disney film queens would go here. A classic would be the unnamed witch-queen of ''[[Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (Disney film)|Snow White]]'';<ref>
** Zira, the main villainess of ''[[The Lion King]] II'' was actually implied to be a queen somewhere about halfway through the first film, back when [[Big Bad|Scar]] was still in power. She was immediately removed from the throne after Simba took over as king (and Scar being dispatched by his own hyenas).
** Another classic example is The Queen of Hearts of ''[[Alice in Wonderland (Disney film)|Alice in Wonderland]]''.
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* The Queen of the Crown in ''[[Adventures of the Galaxy Rangers]]'' is depicted as the ruthless tyrant of a crumbling empire. The episode "Tortuna" mentions that she destroyed all but a handful of cities on the planet Tortuna and nearly drove an alien race to extinction in her thirst for [[Life Energy]]. She also enslaved an entire planet to create a [[BFG]] she used to [[Deface of the Moon|blow a hole in Earth's moon]].
** And said thirst for [[Life Energy]] (especially [[Humans Are Special|tasty humans]]) is due to the fact that it's [[Powered by a Forsaken Child|the feedstock for her favorite henchbeings]], the Slaver Lords.
* Played straight and averted in ''[[Teen Titans (animation)|Teen Titans]]'': Blackfire takes over her homeplanet [[For the Evulz|"for kicks"]], then fakes an enemy
* Subverted in [[Don Bluth]]'s ''[[Thumbelina]]'', in which the fairy queen is quite nice (if not present very often).
* ''[[Argai the Prophecy]]'''s Queen Dark, definitely.
* Played with in ''[[The Prince of Egypt]]''. The Queen is a loving mother to both Ramses and Moses, and doesn't care at all that Moses was a Hebrew child that washed up in a basket. On the other hand, from the perspective of the Hebrew slaves, none of the Egyptian royal family is particularly sympathetic or kind.
* On ''[[Young Justice (animation)|Young Justice]],'' one of the main villains is Queen Bee, a [[Mind Control
* Played in and subverted with Marceline, The Vampire Queen in ''[[Adventure Time]]''. Played straight with Quartzion the Crystal Queen {{spoiler|(Tree Truks after eating the Crystal Gem Apple)}} and the Ice Queen. Totally averted with Lady Rainicorn, the "Rowdy Queen" of the Cloud Kingdom.
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== [[Real Life]] ==
* [[Older Than Feudalism]]: Queen Athaliah of Judah who almost succeeded in [[Offing the Offspring|exterminating the family line of David]].
* This trope was invoked by the Anglo-Saxons of Wessex to explain a period in which they refused to grant the title "Queen" to female consorts of the king. According to Asser's ''Life of King Alfred the Great'', a Mercian-born queen named Eadburh, wife of Beorhtric of Wessex, was reputed to have been a [[Evil Chancellor|power behind the throne]], urging Beorhtric to execute or exile advisers displeasing to her. At those times where the king refused to follow through on the punishments, she would take matters into her own hands poisoning them... until the goblet she had "prepared" for one enemy of hers accidentally ended up in the hands of her husband, who died along with the intended victim. Oops. This necessitated a quick flee to France, where she compounded her error, so the story goes, by snubbing '''''Charlemagne himself''''' by telling him [[Too Dumb to Live|to his face]] that she preferred one of his young and virile sons to him. She ended her days a beggar in northern Italy. Asser claimed that due to this, until the advent of the Frankish-born Judith (the second wife of King Aethelwulf and stepmother to Alfred) -- whose father the Holy Roman Emperor refused any lesser
* Possibly parodied with the [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=artOXVZxECA&feature=related Buckingham Palace Guard] playing the [[Star Wars|Imperial March]]. They were playing that as entrance music for the king of Saudi Arabia, who had no idea what the implications were.
* Whatever the justice of Boudicca's cause, the practical upshot of her short reign was about 70,000 casualties, mainly civilian, in Camulodunum (Colchester), Londinium (London) and Verulamium (St. Albans), and the loss of probably as many Iceni warriors in her final battle at Watling Street.
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