<img src="
http://www.monstersandcritics.com/artman/uploads/marv.jpg" border="0">
"Now, I want you to look inside that bag, and find my wallet."
"Which one is it?"
"The one that says Bad Motherfucker."
<strong>Jules Winnfield, Pulp Fiction</strong>
A character who gets away with outright insane stunts (defusing a bomb with their teeth, conning a mob boss, getting into a firefight with the entire US army, etc.) that would never work in real life. A Bad Ass is a fantasy figure who the audience roots for precisely because they break the <!--link--><a href="
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/WillingSuspensionOfDisbelief">Willing Suspension Of Disbelief</a>.
Many a Badass is a <!--link--><a href="
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/DesignatedHero">Designated Hero</a> -- they're so vile that the only reason to root for them is because the writers say to. Fandom is very forgiving of this, because the stunts are so cool that they don't care. In fact, it's notable that fans are more likely to tolerate a violent monster of a "hero" than a befuddled, cowardly <!--link--><a href="
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/AntiHero">Anti Hero</a>. For example, in Neon Genesis Evangelion, Shinji and Asuka each whine just as much as the other, but Asuka was more popular with the fans because she had guts, despite her being a complete and utter... um... Well, let's just say that she's one of the few characters in Evangelion to even come close to deserving what happens to them.
Most attempts to parody or subvert the Badass have turned into Misaimed Fandom -- no matter how nutty the character gets (like Rorschach from Watchmen), the fans just cheer on how Badass the character is. This has led to a new trope: the <!--link--><a href="
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/HeroicSociopath">Heroic Sociopath</a>.
from TV Tropes Wiki
