The Reason Zenos.

[Gemina]

Zenos just gets bored of everything and has absolutely no sense of humor at all. If he enjoys something, it's out of lust, not humor. Kefka and the joker do have a sense of humor, even though it's twisted, but I think that's a major distinction.
People want to see simple villains have fun when they succeed, which Zenos never did. Zenos actually shows having fun when he's losing, which actually undermines the satisfaction you can get for the protagonist succeeding at stopping such a villain.

The Joker and Kefka have entirely different personalities than Zenos. He wouldn't really fit in as the 'having fun' type. I see Zenos' version of fun like an adrenaline junkie, or war veteran who can't get enough combat. Only feeling alive at the brink of death. I think the distinction is that they are successful in their endeavors. The most accepted version of the Joker has him the polar opposite of Batman. He doesn't really desire to kill him so much as he does antagonize him, which he does over and over again. Kefka doesn't really target any particular hero in the story, but he continues to achieve all of his smaller goals in the pursuit of his final goal to expunge all life. During the course of what these villains do and their successes, when it happens it profoundly affects the protagonist(s).

With Zenos, this has kind of happened. It's tough to argue that he hasn't been successful. They've just had very little impact on the WoL and us as the viewer. But he has to antagonize the WoL in a way he/she acknowledges. We know how passionately he feels towards the WoL, but he/she does not. Right now, Zenos is kind of like the Lego Movie version of the Joker, where he is trying to get Batman to realize he is his ultimate foe.

[Lersayil]

The Joker and Kefka have entirely different personalities than Zenos. He wouldn't really fit in as the 'having fun' type. I see Zenos' version of fun like an adrenaline junkie, or war veteran who can't get enough combat. Only feeling alive at the brink of death. I think the distinction is that they are successful in their endeavors. The most accepted version of the Joker has him the polar opposite of Batman. He doesn't really desire to kill him so much as he does antagonize him, which he does over and over again. Kefka doesn't really target any particular hero in the story, but he continues to achieve all of his smaller goals in the pursuit of his final goal to expunge all life. During the course of what these villains do and their successes, when it happens it profoundly affects the protagonist(s).

With Zenos, this has kind of happened. It's tough to argue that he hasn't been successful. They've just had very little impact on the WoL and us as the viewer. But he has to antagonize the WoL in a way he/she acknowledges. We know how passionately he feels towards the WoL, but he/she does not. Right now, Zenos is kind of like the Lego Movie version of the Joker, where he is trying to get Batman to realize he is his ultimate foe.

Thats one of the main issues many people have with Zenos. By concept he is very much like the Joker and Kefka. A force of nature, goals and motivations usually orbiting the hero or personal feelings rather than grander ideal. The Joker and Kefka however worked, because of the sheer amount of HAM they brought to their scenes. They had personality and humor (albeit twisted) to carry their simpler motivations.

Zenos lacks both, and all that is left is boredom and edge.

It also doesn't help, that at this point the WoL has arguably a more detailed and complex personality, motivation and background than him as a silent protagonist.

In some ways he's starting to remind me of Seifer actually...