In ancient Greece the goddess Nemesis got the brief for dishing out justifiable punishment. If lesser mortals started showing signs of arrogance (hubris), she'd be on their case delivering retribution before you could say lightning bolt ( Usain! Usain! 9.63 seconds, OMG).
As readers, we certainly like to see villains getting their comeuppance. In order to be sure of our place in the world we need to feel that, generally speaking, justice is meted out, the good get rewarded and the bad are punished. It makes us feel secure and, perish the thought, sometimes self-righteous (which would bring about nemesis -- round and round and round we go.)
However, it needn't be just the villains who have to face their nemesis. When you are breathing life into your protagonist and constructing a plot that will thoroughly test their mettle, remember that in classical literature every hero had a tragic flaw, something which contributed to their downfall. While you may not want to punish your hero in the way in the way that Sophocles punished Oedipus, you might find that putting them through the mill, setting them off on a steep learning curve so that they emerge at the end of the story wiser and more rounded, can be a satisfying experience for all concerned.
So, don't neglect nemesis when you are planning your work - make sure that the villains get their just deserts, but don't be afraid of twisting the knife into the good guy too, just a little, because as the great Kahlil Gibran observed, pain is the shell that encloses understanding...
It's Monday morning, Team GB is third in the Olympics medal table, it must be time for another door...
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