Is the Wario series one of the few franchises with a gender equal cast of villains?

[CM30]

Been reading a few Reddit posts about villains in fiction recently, and this one made a point that female majority villain groups tend to be a rarity in media. Usually the villains are majority male with the odd token female henchman, and that's about it:



But then I thought... the Wario series kinda averts this, doesn't it? Wario as a franchise has to have one of the most equal gender villain casts ever:

• Wario Land 1: Captain Syrup
• Virtual Boy Wario Land: Awazon Genie
• Wario Land II: Captain Syrup
• Wario Land 3: Rudy the Clown
• Wario Land 4: Golden Diva
• Wario World: Black Jewel
• Wario: Master of Disguise: Terrormisu
• Wario Land: Shake It: Shake King

Out of those, 4 games have female antagonists, 3 have male or implied male antagonists and the Black Jewel may not even have a gender.

Anyone else notice this?

 

[Cirta]

I feel like Golden Diva and Awazon Genie aren't that much of antagonists. Yes, they are the final boss but they don't have that much importance in the story if at all. They feel like yet another boss rather than antagonist that is present throughout the story. This leaves us with only Syrup as a female antagonist.

 

[CM30]

I feel like Golden Diva and Awazon Genie aren't that much of antagonists. Yes, they are the final boss but they don't have that much importance in the story if at all. They feel like yet another boss rather than antagonist that is present throughout the story. This leaves us with only Syrup as a female antagonist.

Terrormisu is definitely present throughout the story.

And to be fair, on that basis... are most Wario Land antagonists antagonists? You don't see the final boss in VB Wario Land til the final boss fight, you don't see Rudy until the final boss fight in Wario Land 3 (at least in his true form). Heck, you barely see the Black Jewel or Shake King, given they're in the intro, final boss fight/cutscenes and (in the Shake King's case), if you run out of time in a level.

If you're only counting 'active' villains, then you've really only got Captain Syrup in Wario Land 2, and MAYBE the bosses in Wario: Master of Disguise.

 

[Really Ilini]

I would say most of the final bosses in Wario platformers feel like antagonists; even though most of the games don't have a heavy focus on showcasing the villains throughout the story, there is a lot that implies their actions behind the scenes. Syrup being a pirate captain naturally contextualizes all the enemies you fight in 1 and 2 as working under her command, Rudy is a questionable guide who you have no choice but to follow, already casting him into suspicion but making the reveal after you defeat him have more of an impact than his initial betrayal. The Golden Diva is also implied to be behind Shokora's disappearance, and the Shake King is more of a parallel to Wario himself without saying it outright. The only villain I'd question as an antagonist is Demon Head/the Awazon genie, since he's just hiding away at the top floor, while the treasure vault Wario wants to get into in the opening is implied to be multiple floors lower.

 

[Cirta]

Terrormisu is definitely present throughout the story.

And to be fair, on that basis... are most Wario Land antagonists antagonists? You don't see the final boss in VB Wario Land til the final boss fight, you don't see Rudy until the final boss fight in Wario Land 3 (at least in his true form). Heck, you barely see the Black Jewel or Shake King, given they're in the intro, final boss fight/cutscenes and (in the Shake King's case), if you run out of time in a level.

If you're only counting 'active' villains, then you've really only got Captain Syrup in Wario Land 2, and MAYBE the bosses in Wario: Master of Disguise.

I didn't play and know nothing MoD so I had no idea about Terrormisu.

I feel like Rudy the Clown is enough of an antagonist because he still has a presence in the game and is actively tricking Wario. Even though you don't see him truly until the final boss.