A fake tragic is a villain who either faked their own tragedy or actually presents a tragic past, an alleged Freudian Excuse but cannot qualify as truly tragic due their motivation having nothing to do with their so-called tragedy or much simply their tragedy just doesn’t excuse their behaviour. The reason why their tragic past doesn't prevent them from being a villain is due to how they are immune to being affected, with some using it as a flimsy excuse or lie for their actions. In a number of cases, Fake Tragic villains also fall under Debased if they possessed redeeming qualities before becoming villains.

Villains in this category include:

• Villains whose "tragedies" are really petty excuses for villainy (e.g. Aiden, Balthazar Bratt, King Olly, Lawyer Kong, Lusty Krabs, Pepsiman, Sideshow Bob, Santa Claus and Wilford Brimley).
• Villains who brought their misery onto themselves while blaming it on someone, or worse, everyone else (e.g. Drex Stinklebaum, Sunset Shimmer and Peter Griffin).
• Villains who felt unloved or unappreciated but became unsympathetic due to the nature of their actions (e.g. Alameda Slim, Baldi, Bryce Walker, Cecil Terwilliger, The Core, Greg Heffley, Waluigi, Krusto D. Clown, Lord Business, and Vlad Plasmius).
• Villains who experienced genuine tragedies (e.g. losing their family or loved ones, experiencing prejudice, being bullied/abused, abandoned, tortured, rejected by society, living in poverty, having major health issues such as diseases, disorders, disabilities, etc.), but exaggerate how badly it affected them to make false excuses for their actions or simply aren't or no longer affected by what happened to them (e.g. Aligned Continuity Megatron, Friar Archibald Tuck, Caterpie Leader, Louie, Orochimaru, Zinnia and Todd Alquist).
• Villains who were exposed to evil forces which brought out their darkest qualities, toxins that were slowly killing them, given powers that were difficult to appropriately use, etc. but instead of searching for help, seeking a proper way to incorporate their powers, or learning self-control, they used it as an excuse to take up villainy (e.g. Core Uzi, Fliqpy, Joy (Outside In), Gorefield and Mor'du).
• Villains whose excuse sounds good enough, but there's no in-universe proof it actually happened, or it is completely made-up and never happened (e.g. The Black Hiver, Captain Qwark, Ice King, Courtney, The Kanker Sisters, Gallaxhar and Bun Bun.)
• Villains who were already cruel and vile people to begin with before experiencing any form of trauma, whether it was genuine or not. As such, their tragedy is prevented from being a legitimate Freudian excuse in the first place (e.g. Jack Frost, Fecto Forgo, William Afton from Super FNAF and Mad Doctor.)

Mere speculations or implications of a tragic past (e.g. Henry J. Waternoose III, Mario from Secret History, Curator Ponds, Hades, Mandy and Shego) are not enough to qualify a character for this category; they must have an established backstory which must come from an official and trustworthy source.

NOTE: This category is different from Tragic because that category is for villains who have sympathetic backstories that still hold up in spite of all they have done, while the Fake Tragic category is for villains who have backstories that are completely faked or have nothing to do with their actions.

Their opposites are Tragic Inconsistently Admirables