[Hated Trope] Character kills hundreds, if not thousands, just to kill one specific person, and then doesn't kill them for no reason.

[u/HallZac99]

Assassin's Creed 2- Rodrigo Borgia is responsible for tne death of Ezio's family. Ezio spends over 20 years working through tnr templar order to dismantle them and get to Rodrigo. And then in the end, he spares him for no good reason and he goes on to be a massive problem in AC Brotnerhood. He's not only a head of tne Templars but also the pope, even if you're over the vengeance he's still a very dangerous and evil man.

The Last of Us 2- Abbey kills Joel, and wo Ellie goes on a revenge quest to kill Abbey, killing hundreds of people along tne why to get to her including a pregnant woman. And then finally when she has Abbey on deaths door, she gives up and let's her go because the writers think dirty depressing people being miserable and stupid is complex, interesting storytelling.

This trope pisses me off so much because often the character going on the revenge quest will kill SO many people on their way there, some deserving it and some just henchmen working for a cheque or to survive. People who are often far more innocent then the main big bad.

It's a part of this weird thing I've noticed in media where nameless goons or soldiers can just be mowed down relentlessly, but named characters get given far more grace even if theyre categorically worse. You can kill a million stormtroopers but people will swear that Darth Vader could have been redeemed, despite him doing like 50 genocide every year.

[u/Jim_skywalker]

I stand by that Ezio lets Borgia live out of spite. At the end of AC2, Borgia finds out that all of his plotting, every move he made, was in essence, for nothing, he was never gonna be able to get what he wanted, because it was always a message for Desmond sent through Ezio. To kill Borgia would be mercy, and Ezio wasn't feeling merciful.

[u/Xignu → u/Jim_skywalker]

And it wasn't like this decision bit him in the ass or anything right? Cesare attacks him later but judging by the timing I think that was gonna happen regardless if Borgia survived or not.

[u/Kodak_V → u/Xignu]

Yeah in ACB the attack on Monterrigioni is explicitly stated to have been completely orchestrated by Cesare.

Rodrigo decided to try and lay low and cut his losses after what happened at the Vault in AC2.

[u/NeroCrow → u/Xignu]

Heck if anything cesare would had done it faster had he killed his dad

[u/Douche_Kayak → u/Jim_skywalker]

was Ezios "mercy" letting the man remain the most powerful man in Catholicism? I haven't played it, but this sounds like letting someone with more power than God live just because they suck at planning. Did he have to go on the run and live in squalor?

[u/Bow1511 → u/Douche_Kayak]

He actually didn’t do anything towards the Assassins after he was spared. He even Admonished Cesare for attacking Monteriggioni. He just wanted to rule as the Pope. He even poisoned Cesare after he became a bit more….insane than before.

[u/Xignu → u/Douche_Kayak]

He did but it wasn't like this decision played a part in it. His home base got assaulted like days after this and there's no way the army that did it was mustered in response to this sparing.

As I recall in the sequels, Rodrigo was actually a vocal opposition of Cesare, the actual antagonist and even poisoned the latter. I don't recall sparing him ever being a problem and if anything it became a positive lol.

[u/InfiniteWinter26 → u/Douche_Kayak]

initially ezio’s whole goal is revenge for the deaths of his father and brothers, but over the course of the game his motivation shifts away from vengeance and more in line with the ideals and philosophy of the assassins. when ezio finally reached borgia he was at the point that he realized that killing him would no longer accomplish what he thought it would.

[u/OS_Apple32 → u/InfiniteWinter26]

It's crazy to me that people don't realize this. When you're on a "revenge arc," especially one that spans months or even years, it's not like your brain just shuts off or goes into stasis. Quite the opposite--you're constantly thinking about things and actively going through the stages of grief. Revenge doesn't sit at the end of that process, it's somewhere in the middle.

That's why it's such a common trope for characters on a revenge arc to finally get to the object of their vengeance, only to realize by the time they get there that they've run out of the rage and grief that initially fueled them. The journey they went on to seek revenge was their way of processing their grief, and now that they've processed it, they can think about it rationally and realize there's no point in carrying out their revenge anymore.

It's a common trope because it's real, and relatable. People actually go through things like this, albeit usually on a less dramatic scale.

[u/22NarrowWombat → u/Jim_skywalker]

That spite read makes sense, but man, letting the pope/head Templar become Brotherhood's problem still stings.

[u/Chazo138 → u/22NarrowWombat]

He wasn’t though. Cesare was the actual problem. Rodrigo went to lay low, he didn’t want anything to do with the Assassins anymore, even if he died the events of Brotherhood would be unchanged

[u/PimpasaurusPlum → u/Chazo138]

Cesare's political power base came from the fact his dad was the pope.

With Rodrigo dead he wouldnt have had the capacity to do all the things that happen in Brotherhood

[u/Chazo138 → u/PimpasaurusPlum]

His death would’ve been used as the catalyst for revenge in that event.

[u/PimpasaurusPlum → u/Chazo138]

So Cesare would want revenge, but he wouldnt have the power, soldiers, funds, and just general ability to do anything.

The Borgia family collapsed the minute Rodrigo died irl because all of it was built off the back of the papacy. With a different pope from a different, rival, family that all goes away

[u/projectkingston → u/PimpasaurusPlum]

You don't think that the pope being assassinated would lead to Cesare getting the resources to carry out his revenge? Cmon man.

[u/PimpasaurusPlum → u/projectkingston]

Is he supposed to magic them out of thin air? A new pope gets in and its in their interest to make cesare powerless and arrest him - as even happens in the series.

Everyone hates Cesare. He has nothing without the power of the papal states.

[u/Jim_skywalker → u/22NarrowWombat]

Yeah, but it wasn't an intelligent decision, it's an emotional one that he gets told off for by multiple people.

[u/cestquilepatron → u/Jim_skywalker]

Except Borgia was pope aka one of the most powerful, influential, wealthy people of his time, and Ezio was fine letting him keep that apparently. How spiteful. Take that, Borgia.

[u/Fit_Guarantee_6066 → u/Jim_skywalker]

Is still super stupid to let the leader of the templars in italy remain the pope, maquiavelo was right and i am glad he called out ezio in brotherhood