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As James Moriarty once said, “every fairytale needs a good old-fashioned villain,” and anime is no exception to that rule. These animated adventures condition us to root for the protagonist, but there’s something endlessly compelling about a devious, manipulative psychopath. Despite the heroes representing the good and just side of humanity, antagonists are infinitely more interesting, more complex, and — in many cases — crucial to the progression of the narrative. Here are The Nerd Stash’s best anime villains in no particular order.
10. Muzan Kibutsuji (Demon Slayer)
Also known as the Demon King, Muzan Kibutsuji is the main villain of the Demon Slayer anime. Across all three seasons, protagonist Tanjiro Kamado strives to become a Demon Slayer — and eventually a Hashira (the ‘ultimate’ Demon Slayers) to hunt down the Demon King and avenge the genocide of his family.
For the majority of the series, Muzan camouflages as a regular member of society, hiding in plain sight among the civilians. He is cunning, tactical, and relentlessly deadly. When learning about Muzan’s backstory, his history becomes a lot more complicated, thus the argument of his morality comes into play. This makes him all the more fascinating.
9. Nagato Uzumaki (Naruto)
Nagato of Naruto is a descendant of the Uzumaki clan and a shinobi of Amegakure. Following the death of Yahiko, Nagano’s childhood friend and fellow orphan, he adopted the alias of Pain and began enforcing his original goal of world peace but this time by any means necessary. Nagato incited war upon Amegakure to overthrow Hanzō and assume control of its villagers. The villagers would soon appoint Nagato as their God, a title he gladly accepted.
Although Nagato started out as a highly sensitive and sweet child, his alias of Pain acts out of selfish gain and will trample anyone who stands between him and his pursuit of complete submission. He was known to have killed anyone even remotely associated with Hanzō, including infants.
8. Light Yagami (Death Note)
Despite the Death Note anime working tirelessly to convince us otherwise, Light Yagami is the true villain of the series. We are mistaken to believe it is Ryuk, the Shinigami who previously owned the Death Note. However, once Light begins to realize the full potential of the Death Note as a means to an end, he begins mercilessly killing anyone he deems deserving of a fateful death. Under the alias of Kira, Light disposes of irredeemable criminals and thugs.
One day, however, he decides that felons aren’t the only humans deserving of an untimely demise, so he begins recklessly murdering anyone that displeases him — regardless of their innocence in the matter. Light is cold, calculated, and — above all else — remorseless, but it’s hard not to empathize with him to some degree.
7. Vicious (Cowboy Bebop)
Vicious, as his name implies, is cold, sadistic, ruthless, and bloodthirsty. His ambitions often cloud his judgment and prompt him to perform heinous acts to get what he wants. He was a member of the Red Dragon Crime Syndicate and feared by his superiors. He is perceived by many to be the “dark side” of Spike, and the two are at odds with one another several times throughout Cowboy Bebop.
It is worth noting in content with the analogy of Vicious that he is never depicted as smiling unless he grins maniacally during battle. His expression is permanently stoic. He earned the nickname “the snake” by the Van, the seniors of the Red Dragon. His rivalry with Spike only adds to his multi-faceted personality.
6. Johan Liebert (Monster)
Monster‘s Johan Liebert is the anime’s titular antagonist. He is the ‘monster’ that the show refers to. He is a deranged serial killer who was saved from death by Dr. Kenzo Tenma. Johan himself has stated that his ultimate goal is to be the last man standing when the rest of the world is wiped out.
However, after discovering an odd children’s book with strong links to his past, Liebert instead set his sights on the “perfect” suicide. He wished to leave behind no traces of his existence, besides Tenma’s memories of him. Johan is — without the shadow of a doubt — the pure personification of evil. Johan hints at having multiple personalities, which also makes him less predictable than the average villain.
5. Meruem (Hunter x Hunter)
Known as the King of the Chimera Ants, Meruem is the most powerful offspring of the Chimera Ant Queen. He served as the main antagonist of Hunter x Hunter‘s Chimera Ant arc. The Chimera Ant Queen had a goal to give birth to the “perfect” offspring, i.e. the most evil. She succeeded in Meruem, who would kill and cannibalize any Chimera Ant he deemed unworthy of a place among the colony.
He viewed humans as nothing more than a food source and once devoured a newborn baby. Meruem would grow to care for a human named Komugi and question his identity as a half-human, half-ant. Meruem is one of the more redeemable villains, as he seems to have a change of heart towards Komugi and expresses guilt over his mistreatment of humans.
4. Askellad (Vinland Saga)
Lucius Artorius Castus, known simply as Askeladd, was the major antagonist of Vinland Saga‘s War Arc and an influential Welsh-Danish viking. Askeladd is above all else extremely charismatic. He may be sly and cunning, but he can charm his way out of any sticky situation. He is an exceptional swordsman, but he relies heavily on his intelligence as his greatest weapon.
As many vikings often do, Askeladd holds riches in very high regard. He views wealth as the most important component to success and will never hesitate to act and seize what he wants. He will also murder without hesitation if it benefits him or his allies. Askeladd may be bad to the bone, but he was so well-written that fans couldn’t help but root for him.
3. Sōsuke Aizen (Bleach)
For the first half of the Bleach anime adaptation, Aizen acts as the main villain, but he is the most significant antagonist of the whole series. He is the former captain of the 5th Division in the Gotei 13 and formerly served as the lieutenant of the 5th Division under Shinji Hirako. Initially, Sōsuke appeared to be kind and respectful to his subordinates, however, this was all a ploy to disguise his true manipulative nature.
In truth, he feels that his inferiors are all disposable pawns. During his time as commander of the Arrancar army, he instilled fear in his followers to achieve total compliance. Sōsuke is prideful and arrogant, especially towards humans. He rarely ever cherishes another life above his own. This blatant disregard for human life is what makes him so enchanting as a character.
2. Shinsuke Takasugi (Gintama)
In the ever-changing world of Edo, the home to samurai, a ragtag team of misfits encounters extraterrestrials and local gangs. Among these gangs are the Kiheitai, an extremist Joui faction led by Shinsuke Takasugi. He has an ambition to destroy the world, originating from the loss of his mentor Yoshida Shouyou, for whose death he seeks to take revenge. Even though Shinsuke can be largely stubborn and cynical, he does tend to humor people.
He rarely gets his hands dirty and much prefers less direct approaches to achieving goals. Shinsuke became more popular during the Reunion arc, after he was found to show affection for Yakut. This became a running gag of the series, whereas Shinsuke was previously one of the only characters without distinguishing characteristics.
1. Griffith (Berserk)
One of Berserk‘s most significant characters, Griffith, started out as a brave hero before succumbing to dark desires. Born as a human, Griffith turned into an apostle to regain his strength by simultaneously wiping out the Band of the Hawk faction. After defeating Guts in battle, Griffith announces that he “owns” him and forces him to join ranks with the Band of the Hawk.
This turbulent dynamic acts as the basis for the manga and even comes into play throughout the anime as well. When he is reborn, he adopts the alias Femto. Since he gladly sacrificed his followers to become one of the God Hand, it isn’t hard to see that Griffith cares more about dominion than he does building a balanced society. All he wants is to rule, be it with a velvet glove or an iron fist — it doesn’t matter.
