Jan 16, 2014 12:23 AM
Top 10 Anime Villains
Anime Relations:
Cowboy Bebop, Monster, Naruto, One Piece, Kenpuu Denki Berserk, Rurouni Kenshin: Meiji Kenkaku Romantan, InuYasha, Bleach, Yuu☆Yuu☆Hakusho, Yu☆Gi☆Oh! Duel Monsters, JoJo no Kimyou na Bouken, Hellsing Ultimate, Dragon Ball Z, Death Note, Code Geass: Hangyaku no Lelouch, Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann, Baccano!, Soul Eater, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Durarara!!
Intro: What makes a good anime villain? There are many reasons and they all are equal in value, Likability is as important as how much you hate them. How cool they are no matter how bad they are, to me i value ethics and why this person is a villain, but even if the reason is mundane of if they have no reason, what matters if the mentality of that character.
So i decided to give some spotlights to characters that stood out from the rest, even if i don't watch the show as much as others, i do my research just for this list THOUGH NOTE this is only my opinion though i will stick to certain criteria.
1. Character per show
2. Coolness points
3. Reasons and personality
4. Badassness
Though not all characters need to fit into ALL of these categories and i haven't watched every anime out there so yeah.
10. Lordgenome (Tengen Toppa Gurren-Lagann)
The reason i picked Lordgenome over say the Anti Spiral entity, is that i feel his reason for evil is almost a noble thing, he wanted to hold back humanity because he feared the destruction of the world, no matter what gets in his way, he would destroy them without a second thought and believe he is doing them a favor, even viewing himself as the savior of the universe. He also displayed incredible feats at the end of the first half like... oh idk... Beating up a Guren with his BARE FISTS.... holy crap. For saviors of the universe, there is none more villainous than the Spiral King.
9. Marshall D. Teach (One Piece)
I would be the first to admit, i do not watch One Piece as much as most people, however I know for a fact that i hate Blackbeard.... and i love it.... he is such a scumbag and powerful to boot, he is like the anti Luffy, having a similar personality, with the whole stupidity mixed with strategy, his reasons for becoming the Pirate King is for power, his cruelty is what makes him so evil good, carrying the will of D and twisting it with betrayal. Spoiler: He kills one of the strongest and coolest characters in the series, Whitebeard. He also hands Ace over to the World Government, resulting in his death, killing off one of the most likable characters. Overall he wins for his slight badassness, interesting personality and his extreme hate-ability... but if you want a true ruthless Pirate, look no further than Marshal D. Teach, Blackbeard.
8. Dio Brando (JoJo's Bizarre Adventure)
Dude..... JoJo's Bizarre Adventure is... bizarre... in a show filled with so much testosterone, having muscles that can make you look like and oversized flesh cloud, you have to do something to stand out... He is so hardcore, let's talk about his abilities, Superspeed, superstrength, mind control, vampire, regeneration, telekinesis, body snatch..... OH YEAH ZA WARUDO (basically he can stop time) His reasons is to become even more powerful enough to get revenge on the Jo-Star line, unfortunately he had a very short run, otherwise he would be higher up. He doesn't take any crap, almost untouchable in the whole show, he even became internet memes because of how powerful he is, his presence makes you go OH YEAH SOMETHING IS GOING DOWN.... but this show is Bizarre after all so he isn't higher on this list, but when it comes to overpowered testosterone, man fantasy filled villains, look no further than Dio Brando.
7. Aizen Sōsuke (Bleach)
There are times that the watcher can become engaged so much in an anime where they themselves feel affected by the events that go on, with Aizen, the feeling i, and many other people got was a sense of betrayal, we felt betrayed but in the coolest way, it's not like we hated it. When Bleach wasn't filled with plot holes and strained storylines, the Soul Society arc introduced Aizen, he seemed like a genuine nice guy, who cared about his friends and cared about Soul Society and how things are run. I thought he was going to be Ichigos mentor, considering that this is the usual trope of a Shonen anime... but then he died, i was so sad that a character with so much potential would just get killed off like that. The the biggest twist happened, he staged his death and had been plotting to take over soul society from the beginning, he was completely ruthless and supremely powerful even against another captain he completely eclipsed them in power, he even killed his friends and subordinates, he even looks cool doing it, everything went to his plan and i am a sucker for people who are good with planning and manipulating events, he plans for every contingency and lets nothing catch him off guard. Though after Soul society.... ech.. he planned for things that cannot be planned... just used as a plot twist device... it's ridiculous, but i cannot deny that at the start, he was just so cool and if he stayed reasonable, practical but powerful, he would be higher on this list. For a character who is suave and strategic, watch Soul Society arc for the genius known as Aizen Sosuke.
6. Madara Uchiha (Naruto)
Ok... um... "Narutards" you can have your fanspasms now, yes Madara is on this list, he wouldn't have been until recently however, Madara's return signified many things, merely the name started a war, merely saving a kids life, created so much strife for the characters of Naruto. His influence on the show is absolute and undeniable. When he returned to life, it signified all hope is lost for the Shinobi Alliance, let's go through his "Oh crap we are doomed" events during this arc so far. 1. singlehandedly defeating an army of Shinobi with his fists and some swordplay, when stronger shinobi stepped up he used susanoo and stopped them, when the main characters stepped up, he used the Rinne-freaking-gan! and absorbed their attacks THEN DROPPED A METEOR ON THEM... killing effectively everyone, THEN he used Wood style (only available to the strongest shinobi of his era, Hashirama), only being stopped via the efforts of Naruto and Kurama actually HAVING to work together for once. Then the Kage arrive... oh yeah this is going to be a fight for the ages, no way Madara can beat all the Kage... oh wait... he uses the ultimate Susanno and cuts a mountain in half... ok... OH WAIT Itachi saved them, he released the resurrection jutsu... oh that didn't work, he just released the jutsu.... you see where i am going with this... even Naruto's writer Kishimoto doesn't know how to beat him... He is extremely badass and his reasons seemingly are noble in a way, to create peace through putting everyone in a dream world. He has manipulated people to get this far, even planned for his own resurrection. This guy is good, though he falls down on this list slightly because, you just cannot hate him... he is just too cool, especially hearing his back story, you realise who he is. If you are looking for the Power of God, find it within Madara Ichigo.
5. King Bradley/Wrath (FullMetal Alchemist: Brotherhood)
This one was hard for me, i like Envy, Father and Kimblee very closely, but i feel that King Bradley just has more to him, he is the Fuhrer King of Amestris, this by no means makes him a push over politician, even among powerful alchemists who display powers of extreme magnitude, he can hold his own... no even more than that, he can completely destroy them. Unlike the other Homunculi (oh yeah big twist, he was a Homunculus) he has no specific extreme power, he even ages and doesn't regenerate, all he has is his sword and a good eye, able to take on other homunculi and alchemist alike and beating them almost with ease, showing that you do not need to have a super shonen bankai powerful to win. He is cunning and manipulative, almost seeming like a good guy at the start, until the conspiracy is revealed where he and others were planning on transmuting the souls of everyone in amestris. He has no love for humanity, viewing them as weak and pitiful, only having respect for those he deems worthy warriors, but even then he looks down on them. There was many scenes where he was seemingly a gentleman as well, there was one scene where they mourned Hughes when he died, his hands were trembling.... trembling with anger over the fact his daughter was crying. Though his personality is complex but sturdy, often being calm and surprisingly pleasant when he wants to be, there is one love he does have, he cares about his wife, and i just find that cool, he has his ideals, things he enjoys that aren't automatically "lol i am evil and want power" he even shows some spontaneous acts of kindness, this is the multi layered villain i like. Some of his feats include singlehandedly shattering the defence of the rebels who took control of his palace, in this fight, he singlehandedly fought 4-5 main characters and killed 2 main characters, destroyed a tank, decimated ALOT of soldiers (even when his army couldn't get close), all he had was a sword.... a SWORD against guns and alchemy.... I just love his style, those seeking a multi-layered villain with style, look no further than the Fuhrer.
4. Frieza (Dragonball Z)
WHA? DBZ? UP THIS HIGH? Damn right... i admit that it is also because i grew up with this anime but hear me out, imagine being a kid, you don't know what is going on with the world, you think that nobody can get into such a position of power and use it to be evil because people would stand up against it right? As a kid, seeing someone as evil, tyrannical and cruel was extremely eye opening to many kids, his goals are selfish, he is arrogant, you even hate him, this even more so after he tortures Vegeta. We are introduced to him on Namek, he too was searching for the Dragonballs of Namek like the protagonists were, however his methods were more cruel... infact genocidal, he killed old all Nameks in his way.. men and kids, imagine being a kid and seeing this kind of cruelty, he was the cartoon definition of Hitler for kids, teaching us right from wrong, fair from unfair. His feats include the control of the ENTIRE GALAXY, only through being so overwhelmingly powerful in contrast to other races of the universe at the time, he conquered thousands of worlds, controlled some of the strongest warriors ever (notably Saiyan race), he does things on a whim even to his own soldiers, he kills them if he is bothered by them, he even destroyed the entire planet of the Saiyan race with one attack because he was worried that there will be a small uprising on the planet due to the death of King Vegeta (yeah he killed Vegetas dad.... and Goku's dad). He gave the protagonists reason to hate him, Vegeta acted on his hate, and Frieza just played with him, completely demoralizing him before he died, instead of instantly killing him as if to teach him a lesson before he died. HOWEVER what is important is that through Frieza, we see how Goku reacts to him, he doesn't care about it, he did not let hate get to him, he fought with purity showing us as kids what it means to be a hero... even when Goku became Super Saiyan for the first time after getting so angry over Krillin's death, he didn't aim to kill Frieza, he merely wanted to beat him at his peak, to almost teach him a lesson, even tried warning Frieza about the destructo disc about to kill him. What makes a good villain, is the lessons we can learn from the protagonists interactions with them. the Frieza saga was the definitive moment in my childhood and many others. I am sure many of you are upset that i didn't pick Cell, a fan favorite villain, however his reasons were not that evil, he merely wanted to be perfect, he also didn't do anything that was just plain evil, it was merely what he was programmed to do, though that Android 16 moment... but i digress, and Buu... he was just a wild creature of destruction, no motive, no real personality, just his nature. For a Legendary villain of my childhood, watch DBZ and learn a thing or two.
3. Light Yagami (Death Note)
This is where the list gets interesting, believe it or not, Light would have taken first spot if i didn't think about the feats and beliefs of the next two on this list for hours and comparing them. Light Yagami is a genius child, he realizes how the world is and is bored of it. He almost seems distant to the world as it is, then one day he finds a notebook... that can kill. Power corrupts, Absolute power corrupts absolutely, this is no more true than the transformation that Light goes through from becoming an hardworking honor student who is at the top of the list of Japans brightest students, a whole future ahead of him, only to turn into a self proclaimed god who hands his version of justice down on the criminals of the world, he is noticed by the police and L and is dubbed Kira and revered by a group of people who believe in what he is doing. He is intelligent and able to avoid the police in such masterful way, using the rules of the Death Note to inventively plan out his "judgements" and avoid detection from L, often giving the viewer questions on what is right and wrong, making people think about the values of each side of justice. Light Yagami is a good looking and suave guy, he is well mannered and really cool. Even if you disagree with his methods and values, you cannot help but to think he is cool, you cannot help to get caught up in the awe of his plans that are believable and effective and how influential they are. He even influences us as an audience, many people in REAL LIFE support Light, believing him to be doing it for the greater good. I do not believe this, his actions were cruel, even taunting people before they die and fancies himself a god, he even may have convinced himself that he is a good man, even though he acted as if it was a good game, or a pass time, getting bored when (MAJOR SPOILER) he was able to successfully kill L. Even when he finally got caught by the combined efforts of L's successors, his reaction was delusional and almost insane, like a child who lost a game. I for one love the ending because it actually displays the true mentality of a guy who is slowly getting everything he wants. It's impossible to deny Light Yagami's presence as a villain, whether you hate or like him, you will find yourself in awe of the God of the New world.
2. The Major (Hellsing Ultimate)
In a world of people who you can consider anyone a villain, one person has to stand out, it was the Major for me, which i am surprised so many people overlook him... why? Is it because he is a short blonde guy wit no superpowers and isn't a vampire and is also got a bad aim with a gun? It's a shame that people put more emphasis on power and cliche over a legitimately great villains motives, personality and honesty. All the way back in the second world war, Soviet Russia is knocking on the door of the Nazi regime, there was a secret project to create a vampire army. This ultimately did not get completed after the Hellsing Organization's top vampire killers Alucard and Walter eliminated the operation. Little did they know that the Major already had plans, that would span over 50 years with one goal, to kill Alucard. Ok that sounded like a simple goal right? No, Alucard is not your average anime hero, he is the ultimate vampire, practically invincible, every life he has devoured has given him powers so extreme that an entire army of holy paladins, vampire killing priests, Nazi vampires and Ghouls (zombies that can use guns). How can you say that this is an easy task?
Lemme give you a list of Alucards abilities:
Immortality
Invulnerability
Advanced Regeneration
Superhuman senses
Superhuman speed
Superhuman strength
Intangibility
Defiance/manipulation of gravity
Shapeshifting
Teleportation
Telepathy
Hypnosis
Sharpshooting skills
Summons of familiars
Creation of fledglings
Advanced Combat
Memory absorption (through victims' blood)
High resistance to most vampire weaknesses
Though this isn't the main reason why i think The Majors goal is cool, it's his ideals, see he believes that Alucard is just a horrible things, he hates vampires and what they mean. Vampires you see are beings who take the lives into themselves, effectively becoming multiple people in one body, not being a simple and singular person. The Major, hates this concept and believes that a human is defined by their will, he can proudly say that he is himself and revel in his his humanity, even if he is part machine, even if he is envious of the abilities that vampires has, he refuses them simply because he loves humanity, even if he is a Nazi who caused the slaughter of London for this goal to wipe out the biggest insult to humanity, he would. He, a simple man, where gods and warriors, vampires and vampire hunters failed, he sacrificed everything for one moment where he can kill Alucard. Not in a painful way, rather, he gave him a peaceful death. See the way he killed Alucard was by having his subordinate Warrant Officer Schrodinger, kill himself and get absorbed into Alucard when he became to drain the blood of those who died in London to strengthen himself, when a vampire takes in blood, he melds with each person there. Schrodinger however is the Cheshire cat, he is everywhere, omnipresent as long as he is able to recognize himself... however when Schrodinger melded into all the souls that were inside Alucard, he could no longer recognize himself, he was no longer anywhere, no longer alive or dead, since he merged with Alucard and all the souls inside him, they began to disappear, slowly, giving Alucard a peaceful death.
The Major predicted everything that would happen and it fed his complete and utter obsession with war living for such a moment where the Letze Battalion, where he would win over Alucard. Contrasting his fanatical love of war, the Major is always calm, always polite and he is always amused. His personality is that of a man who is contempt with his life, he has purpose and portrays himself with a sinister smile. It's impossible to not get caught up in his speeches and love the characters confidence, able to inspire his vampire army and only being a simple man, completely refusing to become a vampire. He is an effective planner and strategist, developing plans so complex that nobody, not even his subordinates often know the full extent of them, he never takes anything for granted, never has any fear and understands when things are a threat, like he did with Seras and Integra as he knew little of their full potential. The most powerful characters were playing to his symphony in which he was the conductor. Even when he died, he almost wanted it, even cursing the DoKtor for making his bullet proof glass to strong for Seras to shoot through. Even when he died he smiled at the fact he was able to finally hit something with his gun (on which he is a terrible shot with). This guy just gets you so pumped, it's one of those things that are difficult to admit next to characters such as Alucard who is so cool and sets the bar for anti-heroes, Alexander Anderson who sets the bar for the righteous soldier and best nemesis ever award. Who knew that i would actually enjoy a character who is a Nazi? If you want to feel the presence of a true and masterful villain, Lookout for a short blonde man with a sinister smile and oh yeah... a Nazi Vampire army.
1. Johan Liebert (Monster)
This is one of the most undervalued anime out there right now... this isn't filled with anything mystical... anything super shonen power up, this is a great.... no... Masterpiece of a thriller anime and doesn't rely on tropes of other anime before it and could easily be a live action TV show because of how amazing it it. Kenzo Tenma is a neurosurgeon who decided to save the life of a boy rather than the city mayor, in doing so, the Mayor died and his reputation was in ruins... until a string of murders began to happen only days after he saved the boys life. Slowly his life gets back on track, after the death of the people that slandered him and held him back for not saving the mayor, it slowly becomes apparent that these murders were linked to him... and slowly we find out that the boy he saved... was a Monster. I am going to be honest here, there is nothing i can say that can make this segment more fun or more upbeat, because Johan Liebert... he is just too... scary... too coo... too mysterious to even think of anything that can brighten the mood. This is my personal favorite character in anime to date. If you think Light Yagami is the King of deception, manipulation and mystery... Johan is God. Through words, mere words, he can manipulate people into killing each other, no more evident is this the story of 511 Kinderheim. At this Orphanage he was in, Johan lead a revolt between the staff and the patients, only using the power of his words, not even using violence, not even lifting a finger, he managed to make 50 people go mad and brutally and ruthlessly slaughter each other as he just sat at the top of the stairs of the main hall like a King... no like a God, whilst everyone killed each other, leaving him as the only remaining survivor..... he was only 10 years old.... Now he is all grown up, more wiser, more cunning, more charming. Like Bradley, he has shown to show some compassion from time to time, not being purely evil for the sake of being purely evil. Like Frieza, he is willing to kill his subjects when the job is done.. often getting them to do it themselves. Serial killers view him as a holy being whilst others view him as the next Hitler or Antichrist and everyone of them dies, no matter who they are or what influence they have, nobody is safe from him. What is amazing about this guy is how everything seems to remain a mystery, that is what is most frightening about him, it is often speculated whether he was changed into this via 511 Kinderheims top secret research project designed to create the ultimate, perfect and emotionless killing machine using memory manipulation and brainwashing, whilst everyone of the other students seemed to have problems, Johan was perfect, however it is shown that he may have just been born evil, being the perfect killer before entering 511 Kinderheim, which gives a great philosophical debate whether beings are destined to become killers or if it is programmed into us. He can manipulate anyone he wants with the use of conversation, he can manipulate them into doing anything he wants, he doesn't need a powerful notebook, he knows when and where to drop certain sentences to drive people over the edge, he has such a strong grasp of manipulation that he can make them kill themselves no matter who they are, or even if they were willing to in the first place simply because it is more fun to show people who they are before they die, making them want death through... not torture, but reason. As i said he knows when and where to strike in order to put people into a Psychological corner as if he is creating a masterpiece or artform, there was even one moment where he had a police officer who was on his trail (only slightly with hardly any strong evidence) to kill himself merely via a short conversation beforehand, looking at what bottle he picked at the bar, and then asking him "How about a drink"? This drove him insane with grief due to the fact that this Bottle signified his lifes greatest mistake and regret. Johan is so scary that you feel that no matter the context, he is everywhere, manipulating the events as if he is an all powerful God, even if he isn't there. This guy is the cool kind of creepy, doesn't even need to do anything to terrify you, all he needs to do is look at you and you will not sleep out of fear, because behind that charming smile there is a horrible monster which you can only speculate the horrifying thoughts lurking in his head. His reason and goal is so cool as well, he wants to commit the perfect suicide, leaving no trace of his existence except for the memories that are in Doctor Tenma, killing everyone, and destroying his past, and he wants Tenma to be the one to kill him, to haunt him forever as if he is the personification of pure evil, forever haunting anyone who feels his presence.
No serious you need to watch this anime... it's amazing.
Notable Mentions:
Sensui (Yu Yu Hakusho)
Crocodile (One Piece)
Father (Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood)
Envy (Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood)
Pride (Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood)
Shishio (Rurouni Kenshin)
Vicious (Cowboy Beebop)
Lad Russo (Baccano!)
Orochimaru (Naruto)
Medusa (Soul Eater)
Izaya Orihara (Durarara!!) *Technically a villain.... technically doesn't make the list though xD
Yami Bakura (YuGiOh)
Marik (YuGiOh)
Cell (DBZ)
Broly (DBZ)*One of my personal favorites but i had to pick someone else over him
Schneizel el Britannia (Code Geass)
Anti-Spiral (Tengen Toppa Gurren-Lagann)
Griffith (Berserk)
Naraku (Inuyasha)
So i decided to give some spotlights to characters that stood out from the rest, even if i don't watch the show as much as others, i do my research just for this list THOUGH NOTE this is only my opinion though i will stick to certain criteria.
1. Character per show
2. Coolness points
3. Reasons and personality
4. Badassness
Though not all characters need to fit into ALL of these categories and i haven't watched every anime out there so yeah.
10. Lordgenome (Tengen Toppa Gurren-Lagann)
The reason i picked Lordgenome over say the Anti Spiral entity, is that i feel his reason for evil is almost a noble thing, he wanted to hold back humanity because he feared the destruction of the world, no matter what gets in his way, he would destroy them without a second thought and believe he is doing them a favor, even viewing himself as the savior of the universe. He also displayed incredible feats at the end of the first half like... oh idk... Beating up a Guren with his BARE FISTS.... holy crap. For saviors of the universe, there is none more villainous than the Spiral King.
9. Marshall D. Teach (One Piece)
I would be the first to admit, i do not watch One Piece as much as most people, however I know for a fact that i hate Blackbeard.... and i love it.... he is such a scumbag and powerful to boot, he is like the anti Luffy, having a similar personality, with the whole stupidity mixed with strategy, his reasons for becoming the Pirate King is for power, his cruelty is what makes him so evil good, carrying the will of D and twisting it with betrayal. Spoiler: He kills one of the strongest and coolest characters in the series, Whitebeard. He also hands Ace over to the World Government, resulting in his death, killing off one of the most likable characters. Overall he wins for his slight badassness, interesting personality and his extreme hate-ability... but if you want a true ruthless Pirate, look no further than Marshal D. Teach, Blackbeard.
8. Dio Brando (JoJo's Bizarre Adventure)
Dude..... JoJo's Bizarre Adventure is... bizarre... in a show filled with so much testosterone, having muscles that can make you look like and oversized flesh cloud, you have to do something to stand out... He is so hardcore, let's talk about his abilities, Superspeed, superstrength, mind control, vampire, regeneration, telekinesis, body snatch..... OH YEAH ZA WARUDO (basically he can stop time) His reasons is to become even more powerful enough to get revenge on the Jo-Star line, unfortunately he had a very short run, otherwise he would be higher up. He doesn't take any crap, almost untouchable in the whole show, he even became internet memes because of how powerful he is, his presence makes you go OH YEAH SOMETHING IS GOING DOWN.... but this show is Bizarre after all so he isn't higher on this list, but when it comes to overpowered testosterone, man fantasy filled villains, look no further than Dio Brando.
7. Aizen Sōsuke (Bleach)
There are times that the watcher can become engaged so much in an anime where they themselves feel affected by the events that go on, with Aizen, the feeling i, and many other people got was a sense of betrayal, we felt betrayed but in the coolest way, it's not like we hated it. When Bleach wasn't filled with plot holes and strained storylines, the Soul Society arc introduced Aizen, he seemed like a genuine nice guy, who cared about his friends and cared about Soul Society and how things are run. I thought he was going to be Ichigos mentor, considering that this is the usual trope of a Shonen anime... but then he died, i was so sad that a character with so much potential would just get killed off like that. The the biggest twist happened, he staged his death and had been plotting to take over soul society from the beginning, he was completely ruthless and supremely powerful even against another captain he completely eclipsed them in power, he even killed his friends and subordinates, he even looks cool doing it, everything went to his plan and i am a sucker for people who are good with planning and manipulating events, he plans for every contingency and lets nothing catch him off guard. Though after Soul society.... ech.. he planned for things that cannot be planned... just used as a plot twist device... it's ridiculous, but i cannot deny that at the start, he was just so cool and if he stayed reasonable, practical but powerful, he would be higher on this list. For a character who is suave and strategic, watch Soul Society arc for the genius known as Aizen Sosuke.
6. Madara Uchiha (Naruto)
Ok... um... "Narutards" you can have your fanspasms now, yes Madara is on this list, he wouldn't have been until recently however, Madara's return signified many things, merely the name started a war, merely saving a kids life, created so much strife for the characters of Naruto. His influence on the show is absolute and undeniable. When he returned to life, it signified all hope is lost for the Shinobi Alliance, let's go through his "Oh crap we are doomed" events during this arc so far. 1. singlehandedly defeating an army of Shinobi with his fists and some swordplay, when stronger shinobi stepped up he used susanoo and stopped them, when the main characters stepped up, he used the Rinne-freaking-gan! and absorbed their attacks THEN DROPPED A METEOR ON THEM... killing effectively everyone, THEN he used Wood style (only available to the strongest shinobi of his era, Hashirama), only being stopped via the efforts of Naruto and Kurama actually HAVING to work together for once. Then the Kage arrive... oh yeah this is going to be a fight for the ages, no way Madara can beat all the Kage... oh wait... he uses the ultimate Susanno and cuts a mountain in half... ok... OH WAIT Itachi saved them, he released the resurrection jutsu... oh that didn't work, he just released the jutsu.... you see where i am going with this... even Naruto's writer Kishimoto doesn't know how to beat him... He is extremely badass and his reasons seemingly are noble in a way, to create peace through putting everyone in a dream world. He has manipulated people to get this far, even planned for his own resurrection. This guy is good, though he falls down on this list slightly because, you just cannot hate him... he is just too cool, especially hearing his back story, you realise who he is. If you are looking for the Power of God, find it within Madara Ichigo.
5. King Bradley/Wrath (FullMetal Alchemist: Brotherhood)
This one was hard for me, i like Envy, Father and Kimblee very closely, but i feel that King Bradley just has more to him, he is the Fuhrer King of Amestris, this by no means makes him a push over politician, even among powerful alchemists who display powers of extreme magnitude, he can hold his own... no even more than that, he can completely destroy them. Unlike the other Homunculi (oh yeah big twist, he was a Homunculus) he has no specific extreme power, he even ages and doesn't regenerate, all he has is his sword and a good eye, able to take on other homunculi and alchemist alike and beating them almost with ease, showing that you do not need to have a super shonen bankai powerful to win. He is cunning and manipulative, almost seeming like a good guy at the start, until the conspiracy is revealed where he and others were planning on transmuting the souls of everyone in amestris. He has no love for humanity, viewing them as weak and pitiful, only having respect for those he deems worthy warriors, but even then he looks down on them. There was many scenes where he was seemingly a gentleman as well, there was one scene where they mourned Hughes when he died, his hands were trembling.... trembling with anger over the fact his daughter was crying. Though his personality is complex but sturdy, often being calm and surprisingly pleasant when he wants to be, there is one love he does have, he cares about his wife, and i just find that cool, he has his ideals, things he enjoys that aren't automatically "lol i am evil and want power" he even shows some spontaneous acts of kindness, this is the multi layered villain i like. Some of his feats include singlehandedly shattering the defence of the rebels who took control of his palace, in this fight, he singlehandedly fought 4-5 main characters and killed 2 main characters, destroyed a tank, decimated ALOT of soldiers (even when his army couldn't get close), all he had was a sword.... a SWORD against guns and alchemy.... I just love his style, those seeking a multi-layered villain with style, look no further than the Fuhrer.
4. Frieza (Dragonball Z)
WHA? DBZ? UP THIS HIGH? Damn right... i admit that it is also because i grew up with this anime but hear me out, imagine being a kid, you don't know what is going on with the world, you think that nobody can get into such a position of power and use it to be evil because people would stand up against it right? As a kid, seeing someone as evil, tyrannical and cruel was extremely eye opening to many kids, his goals are selfish, he is arrogant, you even hate him, this even more so after he tortures Vegeta. We are introduced to him on Namek, he too was searching for the Dragonballs of Namek like the protagonists were, however his methods were more cruel... infact genocidal, he killed old all Nameks in his way.. men and kids, imagine being a kid and seeing this kind of cruelty, he was the cartoon definition of Hitler for kids, teaching us right from wrong, fair from unfair. His feats include the control of the ENTIRE GALAXY, only through being so overwhelmingly powerful in contrast to other races of the universe at the time, he conquered thousands of worlds, controlled some of the strongest warriors ever (notably Saiyan race), he does things on a whim even to his own soldiers, he kills them if he is bothered by them, he even destroyed the entire planet of the Saiyan race with one attack because he was worried that there will be a small uprising on the planet due to the death of King Vegeta (yeah he killed Vegetas dad.... and Goku's dad). He gave the protagonists reason to hate him, Vegeta acted on his hate, and Frieza just played with him, completely demoralizing him before he died, instead of instantly killing him as if to teach him a lesson before he died. HOWEVER what is important is that through Frieza, we see how Goku reacts to him, he doesn't care about it, he did not let hate get to him, he fought with purity showing us as kids what it means to be a hero... even when Goku became Super Saiyan for the first time after getting so angry over Krillin's death, he didn't aim to kill Frieza, he merely wanted to beat him at his peak, to almost teach him a lesson, even tried warning Frieza about the destructo disc about to kill him. What makes a good villain, is the lessons we can learn from the protagonists interactions with them. the Frieza saga was the definitive moment in my childhood and many others. I am sure many of you are upset that i didn't pick Cell, a fan favorite villain, however his reasons were not that evil, he merely wanted to be perfect, he also didn't do anything that was just plain evil, it was merely what he was programmed to do, though that Android 16 moment... but i digress, and Buu... he was just a wild creature of destruction, no motive, no real personality, just his nature. For a Legendary villain of my childhood, watch DBZ and learn a thing or two.
3. Light Yagami (Death Note)
This is where the list gets interesting, believe it or not, Light would have taken first spot if i didn't think about the feats and beliefs of the next two on this list for hours and comparing them. Light Yagami is a genius child, he realizes how the world is and is bored of it. He almost seems distant to the world as it is, then one day he finds a notebook... that can kill. Power corrupts, Absolute power corrupts absolutely, this is no more true than the transformation that Light goes through from becoming an hardworking honor student who is at the top of the list of Japans brightest students, a whole future ahead of him, only to turn into a self proclaimed god who hands his version of justice down on the criminals of the world, he is noticed by the police and L and is dubbed Kira and revered by a group of people who believe in what he is doing. He is intelligent and able to avoid the police in such masterful way, using the rules of the Death Note to inventively plan out his "judgements" and avoid detection from L, often giving the viewer questions on what is right and wrong, making people think about the values of each side of justice. Light Yagami is a good looking and suave guy, he is well mannered and really cool. Even if you disagree with his methods and values, you cannot help but to think he is cool, you cannot help to get caught up in the awe of his plans that are believable and effective and how influential they are. He even influences us as an audience, many people in REAL LIFE support Light, believing him to be doing it for the greater good. I do not believe this, his actions were cruel, even taunting people before they die and fancies himself a god, he even may have convinced himself that he is a good man, even though he acted as if it was a good game, or a pass time, getting bored when (MAJOR SPOILER) he was able to successfully kill L. Even when he finally got caught by the combined efforts of L's successors, his reaction was delusional and almost insane, like a child who lost a game. I for one love the ending because it actually displays the true mentality of a guy who is slowly getting everything he wants. It's impossible to deny Light Yagami's presence as a villain, whether you hate or like him, you will find yourself in awe of the God of the New world.
2. The Major (Hellsing Ultimate)
In a world of people who you can consider anyone a villain, one person has to stand out, it was the Major for me, which i am surprised so many people overlook him... why? Is it because he is a short blonde guy wit no superpowers and isn't a vampire and is also got a bad aim with a gun? It's a shame that people put more emphasis on power and cliche over a legitimately great villains motives, personality and honesty. All the way back in the second world war, Soviet Russia is knocking on the door of the Nazi regime, there was a secret project to create a vampire army. This ultimately did not get completed after the Hellsing Organization's top vampire killers Alucard and Walter eliminated the operation. Little did they know that the Major already had plans, that would span over 50 years with one goal, to kill Alucard. Ok that sounded like a simple goal right? No, Alucard is not your average anime hero, he is the ultimate vampire, practically invincible, every life he has devoured has given him powers so extreme that an entire army of holy paladins, vampire killing priests, Nazi vampires and Ghouls (zombies that can use guns). How can you say that this is an easy task?
Lemme give you a list of Alucards abilities:
Immortality
Invulnerability
Advanced Regeneration
Superhuman senses
Superhuman speed
Superhuman strength
Intangibility
Defiance/manipulation of gravity
Shapeshifting
Teleportation
Telepathy
Hypnosis
Sharpshooting skills
Summons of familiars
Creation of fledglings
Advanced Combat
Memory absorption (through victims' blood)
High resistance to most vampire weaknesses
Though this isn't the main reason why i think The Majors goal is cool, it's his ideals, see he believes that Alucard is just a horrible things, he hates vampires and what they mean. Vampires you see are beings who take the lives into themselves, effectively becoming multiple people in one body, not being a simple and singular person. The Major, hates this concept and believes that a human is defined by their will, he can proudly say that he is himself and revel in his his humanity, even if he is part machine, even if he is envious of the abilities that vampires has, he refuses them simply because he loves humanity, even if he is a Nazi who caused the slaughter of London for this goal to wipe out the biggest insult to humanity, he would. He, a simple man, where gods and warriors, vampires and vampire hunters failed, he sacrificed everything for one moment where he can kill Alucard. Not in a painful way, rather, he gave him a peaceful death. See the way he killed Alucard was by having his subordinate Warrant Officer Schrodinger, kill himself and get absorbed into Alucard when he became to drain the blood of those who died in London to strengthen himself, when a vampire takes in blood, he melds with each person there. Schrodinger however is the Cheshire cat, he is everywhere, omnipresent as long as he is able to recognize himself... however when Schrodinger melded into all the souls that were inside Alucard, he could no longer recognize himself, he was no longer anywhere, no longer alive or dead, since he merged with Alucard and all the souls inside him, they began to disappear, slowly, giving Alucard a peaceful death.
The Major predicted everything that would happen and it fed his complete and utter obsession with war living for such a moment where the Letze Battalion, where he would win over Alucard. Contrasting his fanatical love of war, the Major is always calm, always polite and he is always amused. His personality is that of a man who is contempt with his life, he has purpose and portrays himself with a sinister smile. It's impossible to not get caught up in his speeches and love the characters confidence, able to inspire his vampire army and only being a simple man, completely refusing to become a vampire. He is an effective planner and strategist, developing plans so complex that nobody, not even his subordinates often know the full extent of them, he never takes anything for granted, never has any fear and understands when things are a threat, like he did with Seras and Integra as he knew little of their full potential. The most powerful characters were playing to his symphony in which he was the conductor. Even when he died, he almost wanted it, even cursing the DoKtor for making his bullet proof glass to strong for Seras to shoot through. Even when he died he smiled at the fact he was able to finally hit something with his gun (on which he is a terrible shot with). This guy just gets you so pumped, it's one of those things that are difficult to admit next to characters such as Alucard who is so cool and sets the bar for anti-heroes, Alexander Anderson who sets the bar for the righteous soldier and best nemesis ever award. Who knew that i would actually enjoy a character who is a Nazi? If you want to feel the presence of a true and masterful villain, Lookout for a short blonde man with a sinister smile and oh yeah... a Nazi Vampire army.
1. Johan Liebert (Monster)
This is one of the most undervalued anime out there right now... this isn't filled with anything mystical... anything super shonen power up, this is a great.... no... Masterpiece of a thriller anime and doesn't rely on tropes of other anime before it and could easily be a live action TV show because of how amazing it it. Kenzo Tenma is a neurosurgeon who decided to save the life of a boy rather than the city mayor, in doing so, the Mayor died and his reputation was in ruins... until a string of murders began to happen only days after he saved the boys life. Slowly his life gets back on track, after the death of the people that slandered him and held him back for not saving the mayor, it slowly becomes apparent that these murders were linked to him... and slowly we find out that the boy he saved... was a Monster. I am going to be honest here, there is nothing i can say that can make this segment more fun or more upbeat, because Johan Liebert... he is just too... scary... too coo... too mysterious to even think of anything that can brighten the mood. This is my personal favorite character in anime to date. If you think Light Yagami is the King of deception, manipulation and mystery... Johan is God. Through words, mere words, he can manipulate people into killing each other, no more evident is this the story of 511 Kinderheim. At this Orphanage he was in, Johan lead a revolt between the staff and the patients, only using the power of his words, not even using violence, not even lifting a finger, he managed to make 50 people go mad and brutally and ruthlessly slaughter each other as he just sat at the top of the stairs of the main hall like a King... no like a God, whilst everyone killed each other, leaving him as the only remaining survivor..... he was only 10 years old.... Now he is all grown up, more wiser, more cunning, more charming. Like Bradley, he has shown to show some compassion from time to time, not being purely evil for the sake of being purely evil. Like Frieza, he is willing to kill his subjects when the job is done.. often getting them to do it themselves. Serial killers view him as a holy being whilst others view him as the next Hitler or Antichrist and everyone of them dies, no matter who they are or what influence they have, nobody is safe from him. What is amazing about this guy is how everything seems to remain a mystery, that is what is most frightening about him, it is often speculated whether he was changed into this via 511 Kinderheims top secret research project designed to create the ultimate, perfect and emotionless killing machine using memory manipulation and brainwashing, whilst everyone of the other students seemed to have problems, Johan was perfect, however it is shown that he may have just been born evil, being the perfect killer before entering 511 Kinderheim, which gives a great philosophical debate whether beings are destined to become killers or if it is programmed into us. He can manipulate anyone he wants with the use of conversation, he can manipulate them into doing anything he wants, he doesn't need a powerful notebook, he knows when and where to drop certain sentences to drive people over the edge, he has such a strong grasp of manipulation that he can make them kill themselves no matter who they are, or even if they were willing to in the first place simply because it is more fun to show people who they are before they die, making them want death through... not torture, but reason. As i said he knows when and where to strike in order to put people into a Psychological corner as if he is creating a masterpiece or artform, there was even one moment where he had a police officer who was on his trail (only slightly with hardly any strong evidence) to kill himself merely via a short conversation beforehand, looking at what bottle he picked at the bar, and then asking him "How about a drink"? This drove him insane with grief due to the fact that this Bottle signified his lifes greatest mistake and regret. Johan is so scary that you feel that no matter the context, he is everywhere, manipulating the events as if he is an all powerful God, even if he isn't there. This guy is the cool kind of creepy, doesn't even need to do anything to terrify you, all he needs to do is look at you and you will not sleep out of fear, because behind that charming smile there is a horrible monster which you can only speculate the horrifying thoughts lurking in his head. His reason and goal is so cool as well, he wants to commit the perfect suicide, leaving no trace of his existence except for the memories that are in Doctor Tenma, killing everyone, and destroying his past, and he wants Tenma to be the one to kill him, to haunt him forever as if he is the personification of pure evil, forever haunting anyone who feels his presence.
No serious you need to watch this anime... it's amazing.
Notable Mentions:
Sensui (Yu Yu Hakusho)
Crocodile (One Piece)
Father (Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood)
Envy (Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood)
Pride (Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood)
Shishio (Rurouni Kenshin)
Vicious (Cowboy Beebop)
Lad Russo (Baccano!)
Orochimaru (Naruto)
Medusa (Soul Eater)
Izaya Orihara (Durarara!!) *Technically a villain.... technically doesn't make the list though xD
Yami Bakura (YuGiOh)
Marik (YuGiOh)
Cell (DBZ)
Broly (DBZ)*One of my personal favorites but i had to pick someone else over him
Schneizel el Britannia (Code Geass)
Anti-Spiral (Tengen Toppa Gurren-Lagann)
Griffith (Berserk)
Naraku (Inuyasha)
Posted by
Cebix
| Jan 16, 2014 12:23 AM |
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