Greetings and Lamentations, I AM Lord Malignance and you Will Crouch! before me Now.
(Villains excepted, of course)
Well, it Has been a run, hasn't it? It was just five years ago on this day, that One picked up the Mantle of Villainy to fight against the tyranny of Real Life Super Heroes with this first post here;
http://lordmalignance.blogspot.com/2009/08/and-so-it-begins.html
And In those five years, Great Evil has been wrought.
One Flakked Skiffy when they went after Potentate and our fledgling Villainy in Blogs, for his post on DC's Guardian.
One Flakked Krampus and the Skiffy Gang, while covering for Villains Too Stupid to know better than to Dox (go after and use personal information to harm people). That ended with the Only Villain having the police show up on his doorstep and his having himself evicted ("gold mask" indeed). Real Villain? Hah. Real Short List in a Suspect Lineup. First to blame The Drugs. Neither of which is anything you'll find on a Real Villain's resume.
Covered for White Skull when he flamed out. And came back and Flamed out. And came back again and flamed out. And flamed out again. Then tried to steal the identity of Crimson Nematode - a colleague, but forgot when roleplaying, that Crimmy was Canadian. And flamed out again.
Flakked ROACH when the minions took over and instituted the ridiculous "Class3" policy which put Villains in relation to criminals, and provided authorization for doxing as a strategy for advancement. Needless to say, it killed ROACH.
Engaged in the great struggle with my former ArchNemesis, Phantom Zero. At the time, he was the Mind of the RLSH - his ideas contributed heavily to shaping their purpose, just as Zetaman shaped their heart. Eventually enjoying a rewarding Moriarty and Holmes adversarial relationship with him. Though he is gone, heh, heh, heh, One wishes him well and happiness wherever he is.
After Blogger died out, One Maintained, kept the Torch Lit here. One kept going after every Other Villain blog floundered and withered. One promoted Cabal, Forum, Facebook, Blogtalk Radio, Groups and Organizations of Worth and Value. Video Games, Shows, adventures, Pursuits of every kind. One sought out and found Villains to bring to our number, and in my company Villainy Flourished.
One went to Facebook, and in Facebook One ruled as Only One could. Never found weak by allowing anything but the character to Stand for a Purpose. One held to the Old Code;
http://lordmalignance.blogspot.com/2011/07/villainy-does-indeed-have-code.html
One maintained the Traditions. Respect. Fear. Vendetta. One kept our Earliest lessons alive - the Grandmaster Calamity Challenge. But welcoming and supporting new ones - Verbentines Day.
One charted the Fourth Estate before it became MetaVillainy. One defined MetaVillainy as the Self Awareness that "Villains" were inherently silly, to Mock the seriousness of "superheroes". To put in light their ridiculousness by taking their idea to Humorous ends. To confront their grim grittiness with laughter and mirth. One stood stalwart against the threats to Villainy outside and within. One championed the Game and not RLSV ("Real Life Super Villains") - the poor mirror of superheroes and all that is ugly, limited, and unworthy. The Game - Purpose, Focused and directed. An adversary to the Idea of Superheroes, when other Villains sold out their purpose for Friend likes, and to go on "Patrol" with them. To play sidekick in superhero shadows. Like trained dogs on short leashes. One never allowed corruption of The Very Purpose we Are Villains to weaken the Great Cause. One was there when some in Villainy considered criminal assault against superheroes in playing RLSV, and "Villainy will do as it Will" as the stupidity of the superhero mindset self inflicted on Villains.
One challenged the idea of superheroes carrying guns - so much so that One couldn't believe that superheroes could even Be stupid enough to carry guns on patrol, and in this One was found wrong - some superheroes Did in fact carry guns, and One had to apologize. And then One went after the idea of superheroes carrying guns, bringing my wrath down upon the heads of those who sought to defend it.
One collected, cultivated, and cherished Villains from across the globe. Their diversity adding to our strength as we learned to enjoy their vision and add it to our own. To embrace this idea of Villainy that we all share and enjoy. Silly, yes, but Rich and Valuable, made more so by shared enjoyment.
One went after the RLSH. The X-Alts. The Initiative. The RCSM. Skiffy. TRIBE. One kept my Mighty Colorado Holdfast free of superhero infestation. One presented reason and logic and changed the course of superheroes. When One came on the scene, they claimed Magic, actual superhuman abilities, "Callings From Beyond", and weird otherworldly "Justice Senses". Some thought Violence was justified, and One confronted them.
Whenever Villainy faltered, One was there. When attacked One was there. One pushed for a Better Villainy, and at cost.
One survived numerous attacks - and not just Ninjas! Lies from other Villains, whining from minions, Weakness and failure, mountains of selfishness and incompetence. The Staggering Lack of Vision beyond "Getting something for myself" was Always a hurdle to overcome. And after each Cycle of Villainy ended - Bloggerverse, Cabal, Forum, Facebook, Facebook, One was there to pick the pieces back up and Lead once more. Yes. Lead. Whether you knew or not, it was Me. Always. The only one to Hold to high ideals. A Purpose and a Vision for Villainy. Consistently, and my Vision has Held in all these years, when all others have failed.
One has taken the barbs of imbeciles like Hazmat and laughed at him. The inept bumbling of Paradox Core, and revealed their activities, purpose, and handiwork. And Laughed at their attempts to seem competent in any real way at all. One has demolished Circus Jaxs - a clod too stupid to see the Value of Villainy as greater than his idiot hormones. He can't Do what he's been doing any longer. People Know. Confronted Skeevers. Confronted minions who brandish weapons - as if Masked men with weapons as Evil people was Ever going to be a successful model. Advertised with Zeal the many failures of superheroes. With Purpose, clear and straightforward. The High Ground.
One has appeared with Other Villains, my friends in Sector III. Appeared in Videos of others. Appeared in a Book. In Newspaper. On Blogs and at Conventions. One has Protected Villainy and Supported its Members.
One brought to light The RISE of Villainy - how Villains and Villain Culture are appearing more and more frequently around us in media and culture. The Linking Our Villainy to those that came before - to Dr. Steel. Linking Our Villainy to Greater Purpose and Noble Cause - The Evil of Dissent, in History and Culture. That we are Sons and Daughters of Mark Twain and Voltaire, and Many, Many More.
One pushed for Equality of Members - Villains, Villainesses, Gay, Straight, Talking Cabbage, Puppet, Werewolf from the Moon, whatever. That our Villainy was a Meritocracy, that your talent, your sharing, was what gave you Position. The Peerage, that Villains acknowledged Villainy in Others for Inclusion in our ranks. And Yes, when wrong actions continued to be made, the distinction of my displeasure. That you would find No respect in my eyes and be known as Hench. Minion. Toady. Or in one case, Useless Cannon Fodder.
One championed Respect for Women at the end. That we could confront lies as were once said about Me, not with doxing or terror, but with Truth. Logic. Courage and Dignity. That it didn't Matter what was said or by who, Villain Or hero. That we could still wage War, but agree on simple terms - that Women should be respected. One is late on that, as by the time One saw the pattern, most of our Villainesses were already gone. But - where others refused to speak for fear of losing popularity, One Stepped forward. Not because it was easy to do, but because it Needed to be done, and non one else Would or Could do so.
One gained and lost good friends along the way. Bob went to Mexico eventually, Nixon remains in California, Comrade Cocoa died, and Diabolical Madame X continues to be what she has always been. One lost a few Evil colleagues from the beginning.
Ubermas, MOOB, Malignopalooza, and too many to count. Challenges and community activities. One has worked with some of the most Interesting and Powerful Villains. You Know who you are. One has seen the mighty fall as their own failed ideas caught up with them, and seen Villains Rise from humble origins. In 5 Years, One has seen so much. Overall? Delightful. Worthy. Evil and Wonderful things. Villainy is just really beginning. It has a promising future.
One fought the Evil fight. The fight that Needed to be fought. Never against People, but against characters and Ideas. Ideas are the war, where battles are waged. Never people. People are small and easily replaced - forgotten and forgettable. Only Ideas live beyond their creators. One was hilariously obvious with poor science subliminal messages, Memes, Egregores, campaigns, and battles. One thought so too. But the Purpose was upheld. That Villainy succeed.
One has been parodied - sometimes well and sometimes poorly. GoGoMaligno was one of my secret favorites. It was if nothing else, Effervescent. There was also/is the First Church of Lord Malignance. Along the way, One stumbled on "Malignant Narcissism", Found a Heavy Metal Band with a name very similar to my own (One wishes them every success), Inspired a few Villains, and been inspired by more. Good Gravy, Fong and Magnus are awesome. One remains a great fan.
The Cognac toasts have been made, and the Malignanceship will take my time going forward. As my career in Villainy ends, some loose ends to tie up. The forum will probably go away. It keeps being taken over by Russians who advertise who knows what. The webpage will remain - it brings surprising business to my doorstep. And if you read carefully, you'll know from Whom. This blog will be allowed to slowly fade away - One will remove a few pages every week or so until all are gone (There are over 1100 !). Facebook will be shutdown (time waster that it Is). The Youtube Channel videos will be replaced with new ones over time. There are some Real Stinkers there. VNS may languish or go away. VBN may survive. Twitter will probably stay around - "T" and the Colfax Crew seem to depend on it, and if you're trying to hustle your Take on Colfax, you need to keep your earners in line. Overall, the Lord Malignance you know and Fear will slowly fade away. And that's ok. Villainy Needs Fresh ideas. New Villains to rise from ranks of Hench to lead and Flakk and fight and bring Fear. One has gone as far as One can, and to those who rise to take my place in Peerage of the Highest Rank, One wishes you Success. May you take Villainy farther than One has, Collect accomplishments to shame this meager list, and become a Legend and Icon that will dwarf my accomplishments.
One will be back in Facebook for Ubermas. There are those wonderful Prophesies of Villains returning to fulfill. And who doesn't love a Sinister Ubermas? Skullian Pranks to pull, and all that Food and Dancing! After that, probably test Launch of the Malignanceship - though technically it IS ready to launch now. Just that worrying limitation on it's Astronavigational charting capacity. It tends to be limited to very close nearby space - the Solar system. Much beyond that, and it can't model star patterns sufficient to determine location. Too bad though, because the Jump Drive - That can Fold Space and put you Anywhere in the Universe. Well - in theory. Not really sure about that, and don't want to find out.
So the End is here now, and it's been truly humbling to come now to these final words;
I AM Lord Malignance.
And you may RISE.
(Villains Only)
-Lord Malignance
August 1, 2014
The Lair
Colorado Holdfast.