*Not good guy vs bad buy, but well-written vs poorly written*
We've all seen movies or TV shows with characters that are just a frustrating snooze fest. Maybe the plot is interesting, but the villain has no motive, or the antagonist is boring and overly cliche.
A good character drives the plot forwards by interacting with the conflict. Their goals should align with it in some way.
A bad character may not relate to the conflict, or, most commonly seen, their goals are confusing or unclear.
A good protagonist should make progress on solving the main conflict, whereas a good antagonist will create effective obstacles for the protagonist.
Most importantly, the character must be consistent!
Example of a good character: Aragorn from LOTR
Aragorn is of royal descent, and wants to free Middle-Earth from Sauron's evil powers for the sake of all people. His goal is clear, and he contributes to the plot by supporting Frodo in his journey to destroy the One Ring. He provides knowledge, protection, and leadership.
Example of a bad character: Kayaba from Sword Art Online
Kayaba is the antagonist who traps everyone inside of SAO. It's clear he wants people to beat the game, but why does he trap them in the first place? What brought him to the point of his complete disregard for human life? He isn't a very good antagonist because his main goal is unclear, and therefore uninteresting. Even more confusing, he seems relatively chummy with Kirito after the game is completed, and even gives him an important gift. Without clear motive, this change in attitude is even more confusing.
Aragorn is of royal descent, and wants to free Middle-Earth from Sauron's evil powers for the sake of all people. His goal is clear, and he contributes to the plot by supporting Frodo in his journey to destroy the One Ring. He provides knowledge, protection, and leadership.
Example of a bad character: Kayaba from Sword Art Online
Kayaba is the antagonist who traps everyone inside of SAO. It's clear he wants people to beat the game, but why does he trap them in the first place? What brought him to the point of his complete disregard for human life? He isn't a very good antagonist because his main goal is unclear, and therefore uninteresting. Even more confusing, he seems relatively chummy with Kirito after the game is completed, and even gives him an important gift. Without clear motive, this change in attitude is even more confusing.
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