The Year's Best Villains: From "Gu Famiy Book" To "The Heirs"

Kdrama villains are so bad they're good, at least when it comes to being entertaining. But which villains were the best in 2013? A few stand out. And they were evil in different ways. There are the evil villains whose actions you can't excuse. You want them to suffer for what they've done. And then there are the villains whose own lives were so tortured that you can almost forgive them.

Two of this year's most evil villains are both found in historical dramas.

"Gu Family Book"

In "Gu Family Book," Lee Sung Jae played Jo Gwan Woong, the pitiless man who destroyed lives without a backward glance. He was so cruel that viewers hated him. The performance is a tribute to what a fine actor Lee Sung Jae is, as he went on to play a sympathetic character in his next drama "The Suspicious Housekeeper."

"Empress Ki"

Equally evil is Jeon Guk Hwan as El Temur in "Empress Ki." He's so obsessed with power, nothing else matters. He holds the emperor hostage and he's not above using poison or the sword to kill anyone who gets in his way.

"I Hear Your Voice"

Viewers might argue that Jung Woong In as Min Joon Guk is this year's most despicable villain. In "I Hear Your Voice," he leaves a trail of bodies behind and makes life miserable for Lee Bo Young and Lee Jong Suk. He even kills Lee Bo Young's onscreen mom after she made him seaweed soup for his birthday. Despicable. But when viewers find out why he did it, he starts to seem less evil and more pathetic.

"Missing You"

The same holds true for Yoo Seung Ho, who played Harry Borrison in "Missing You." He's cunning and amoral, but he had a pretty terrible childhood. Viewers felt sorry for him even as he was killing people and controlling Yoon Eun Hye. In his own twisted way, he just wanted to protect her.

"Secrets"

 Bae Soo Bin as An Do Hoon in "Secrets" is one of the more interesting villains in this year's roundup and he wins the prize for being the most complex bad guy. He starts out as a principled man. He strives to do the right thing. But his ambition and greed subtly and slowly change him. In the end his heart is as black as any of the outright evil villains on this list. And when he finally has to face justice, he may be the one who suffers the most because he knows exactly what he has done wrong

"The Heirs"

 Kim Woo Bin plays Choi Young Do, the villain of "The Heirs" but he's not much of a villain. He recently thanked his fans for liking the "evil Choi Young Do" but he's not all that evil. He starts out bad, bullying people into leaving the elite Jeguk High School, but you quickly learn how vulnerable he is and he starts to change, turning from a bully into a protector. He's the nicest villain of the lot.

Did we miss anyone bad? Let us know.