I felt sorry for him too and I think that was his purpose as a character. He "just" wanted his daughter back, but
when he gets her in a variant of the events he doesn't really treat her like a father would.

To be honest, he feels like this guy who should be the last villain before the Absolute; Gortash and Orin seem much less dramatic than him. He would probably took the focus away from the final fight, but anyway.