ABSTRACT
The flamboyant villains in the twelve novels by Ian Fleming often voice his critique of Bond’s hegemonic masculinity. Albeit stereotypically similar and equally interested in patriarchal power, each villain is distinctive. Among them, Ernst Stavro Blofeld stands out. Blofeld and Bond fight each other in three novels: Thunderball (1961), On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1963), and You Only Live Twice (1964). As the villain’s physical appearance changes wildly while he descends into madness—and the novels into pulp—Bond’s role is questioned. Since he fails, a woman must kill Blofeld’s main collaborator, villain Emilio Largo. Bond feels, besides, excessive admiration for his father-in-law, an ageing gangster with a long criminal career. And, ultimately, Bond destroys Blofeld seeking personal revenge rather than justice. As Fleming hints, if Bonds knows how to fight villains this is because he is also a flawed man.
