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[ViolentViolet]

SLENDERMAN = MALEVOLENT

[Cougar Draven]

I'm pretty sure that most of us actually understand this, and that the "not really malevolent" things are just jokes.

[OmegaX]

[TheMorrigan]

[8bitFilk]

I've argued a few times that we've never seen him do anything aggressive, which is completely true. I don't for a second think he's in any way friendly or harmless though.

I pointed it out initially because The Op is obviously there to creep us out and act sinister, but though there are instances where it suggests he's harmed someone (like the "creeping into Alex's room ==> Bloody-faced Alex" thing), it seemed that the MH boys had been really careful not to actually show him doing anything.
When that sort of thing happens in movies and TV shows, it's usually a red herring; You're lead to believe that Guy A has committed the crime, then in the final act you find out it was actually Guy B all along, it just looked like Guy A had done it.

This could just as easily be a tactic to retain the Operators mystique (the monsters in horror movies always become less scary the more you know about them), but it's still worth looking at both ways if you want to try and figure the story out.
Don't forget, MH isn't really a true ARG; it's got a lot more in common with TV shows like Lost, so narrative and cinematic tricks like this aren't unlikely.

But I do agree that it's kind of dumb to seriously consider that he's friendly. If he's not just plain evil, then I'd suggest he's maybe just inscrutable; he does what he does for his own reasons, and whether people get hurt or not doesn't even occur to him.

...but that's only if he's not just plain evil!

[Cougar Draven]

[Brauley1]

To be perfectly honest with you I've never thought of Slendy to be anything other than malevolent hahahha.
If not that then at least slightly grumpy.

But seriously, maybe he's only malevolent to the people that don't willingly come with him? He could be trying to take people To The Ark.
People get freaked out by this mockery of all that is good and pure in the world and don't go with him.
He gets pissed off.
????
Profit!

[evilblackbunny]

INCOMING TEXT WALL!

Since someone started a thread about it, I think I'll throw my hat into the ring, hopefully before this thread dissolves into a bunch of 20 dollahz jokes and the like. Feel free to kick my hat into the mud, guys.

Is it possible that Slenderman isn't an evil entity? I do think it's possible; yes, he made Alex bleed, didn't he? Well, we didn't exactly see the thin fiend do the deed, did we? Still, Alex and Amy jumping from the window in entry 26 points to Slendy being evil, doesn't it? Well, kinda; Slenderman may not be aware of what he is doing, exactly. [ie: not knowing ones own strength.] This one seems less likely; Slenderman in most mythos-tellings is seen as an old, Germanic horror from the times of fairy tails. It seems he'd know -if he were not evil- that he was harming others.

It could be a case of 'does not care'. If you get in his way, he'll do what he likes; go around you, over you, or through you, or take a kidney and a lung because he wants to or can. He could stalk you if he wanted, kill you if he wanted to, but this seems less likely than 'not knowing ones own strength'. Sociopathy does not fit the bill for Slenderman, at least not to me. He seems like one to plan things out, and have a reason for what he is doing. [I like the idea that he's punishing people as his motive. Disproportionate retribution, anyone?]

There's also the very slim chance that Slenderman is just a predatory creature and nothing more. After all, he stalks people that he could see as prey. In older mythos he impales people on trees, [saving food for later, maybe?] and stores organ in bags. Predators, like leopards, do this with food. Is it not possible that Slendy is doing just that? Hell, he's trying to look like us, suit and tie and the 'hug from hell' thing. It could be a trick used to lure pray-like an angler fish! He might have had to take a humanish form to find food because people stopped going into the woods. What it boils down to is he could just be another hungry beast... This theory seems about as likely as him wanting 20 dollahz, but I put it out there for the sake of argument.

So, is Slenderman truly evil? Well... I'm not saying no, but it seems likely.

^^; I'll shut up now.

[Brauley1]

You said he seemed to be the kind of being to plan things out.
One thing.
I don't think the whole Entry 26 thing was planned. I think Signor Slend was minding his own business when all of a sudden Alex, Prey he had long lost, showed up on his radar(Via the camera) and he jumped at the chance to take down his old nemesis(For lack of a better word) again.
Think of it like the beginning of world war one.
A group of people had tried multiple times to assassinate the Arch Duke of Ferdinand(Or whatever his name was) and after one failed attempt alot of them fled the country or killed themselves.
One day one man from the group was sitting at a cafe, minding his own business when lo and behold the person they were trying to assassinate drives by in a car.
Not wasting any time the assassin pulls out a gun and shoots him.
I'm just saying; maybe it's a coincidence that Slenderman happened to know Alex was still alive.

*Picks up hat and dusts it off*
Rather a nice hat.
*Puts it on*

[evilblackbunny]

[ViolentViolet]

There is existing dissent in this thread so Don't tell me everyone knows he's evil.

And I know EMH isn't related but like, take the Hansel and Gretel story for example. In every book, movie, show etc, they are good and the witch is evil. There is an accepted protagonist and a villain.

[Brauley1]

[8bitFilk]

How about we have a simple show-of-hands vote? Just state which theory you agree with the most: FRIENDLY, EVIL or NEUTRAL.

My vote goes with EVIL.

I was only arguing against jumping to conclusions about the Operator based on suggested facts rather than real ones, or based on evidence from outside Marble Hornets (it's been said many times, but the Operator isn't necessarily Slender Man, he's just based on him. The use of a different name seems to be a clear indication that Troy & Co. wanted a bit of distance between themselves and the Slender Man mythos so they could do their own thing with the character).

[TheMorrigan]

Evil
//insert minimum character count obligation

[BlackRoseInWinter]

EVER THINK OF THAT?! ; A ;