Top 25 Best Manga Villains Of All Time
25. Twice
Manga: My Hero Academia
Twice is one of the main antagonists of the series My Hero Academia. He has an identity crisis because of his quirk and suffered from something that is similar to dissociative disorder. He joined the League of Villains as they accepted him for what he was.
Twice is one of the saddest characters on the list. He remained loyal to his friends till his end and his character conclusion is perfect.
24. Bondrewd
Manga: Made In Abyss
Bondrewd is an antagonist of the series, Made In Abyss. He is a legendary White Whistle Delver who has done great discoveries about the abyss and even made the 5th level inhabitable by humans which were unthinkable to anyone.
He is one of the evilest villains I have seen in the Manga. He does anything needed for research purposes including manipulating and even sacrificing little children. He is one of the rarest villains who got on my nerves.
23. En
Manga: Dorohedero
En is one of the primary antagonists of the series, Dorohedero. En is one of the strongest magic users in the world and he is also head of the En family who acts as the antagonist group in the series. En is the one who controls almost all business within the Magic-user realm.
A lot of characters in Dorohedero aren’t truly villainous but rather have a gray morality and En is also the same. Dorohedero’s world is pretty chaotic and the line between what is good and evil isn’t straightforward. En perfectly encompasses it and it is also tough to hate En and his family.
22. Eto Yoshimura
Manga: Tokyo Ghoul
Eto Yoshimura is the primary antagonist of the series, Tokyo Ghoul. She is the head of the organization Aogiri Tree. It isn’t often we come across a compelling female villain in the manga. Eto is the best female villain in the medium for me.
21. Garou
Manga: One Punch Man
Garou is one of the recurring antagonists of the series, One Punch Man. Garou is a self-proclaimed Hero Hunter and goes against both Heroes and also the Monsters. He is a former student of Bang but was expelled. He has a fascination for monsters and wants to become the strongest monster himself to show fear to everyone.
Garou is also an over-the-top character just like Saitama. He constantly evolves just like a typical protagonist with new powerups and no matter how much he is pushed, he never gives up. He intends to change the world by becoming absolute evil.
20. Ryo Asuka
Manga: Devilman Crybaby
Ryo Asuka is the primary antagonist of the series, Devilman Crybaby. He is an Angel who was banished to Earth after having a fallout with God. He took the appearance of a young boy named, Ryo Asuka. He wanted to destroy humanity by having them fight each other by revealing the presence of demons among them.
19. Frieza
Manga: Dragon Ball
Frieza is one of the early antagonists in the Dragon Ball. He has been a recurring character ever since but I have only included Frieza for his role in Namek Saga. He was simply impossible to be defeated and played the role of an insurmountable wall perfectly.
Frieza is one of the most iconic anime villains of all time. The most iconic power-up, Goku’s Super Saiyan is that iconic because of how tough and great a villain Frieza was.
18. Askeladd
Manga: Vinland Saga
Next on the list is Askeladd from Vinland Saga, a crafty and mysterious Viking who led a mercenary company of Vikings. Askeladd was half-Danish and half-Welsh, descended from the famous Lucius Artorius Castus, after whom his mother named him, with “Askeladd” as a nickname.
Askeladd is a shrewd, devious, and charismatic man. His greatest strength is his mind and his ability to strategize and adapt depending on the situation. He is also a great swordsman and a fighter. Askeladd is the most interesting character in the series and one of the best villains in Manga.
17. Sensui
Manga: Yu Yu Hakusho
Sensui is the main antagonist of the Black Chapter Saga in the series Yu Yu Hakusho. he was a former Spirit Detective, a prodigy, and had a great sense of what is right and wrong. As a spirit detective, he was often ruthless in killing the demons whom he considered purely evil.
His entire world was turned upside down when he saw a ritual called “The Feast of Human Vices”. He became so mad in his mind and unable to contemplate what he had so far, that he created multiple personalities to cope with the guilt and reality of the world.
16. Aizen
Manga: Bleach
Aizen is one of the antagonists of the series, Bleach. The main appeal of Aizen as a villain is how methodical he is. It feels like he has control over everything and everyone, which creates the sense he cannot be beaten, a great quality to have as an antagonist.
The way he was revealed, aka his introduction as the antagonist, his overwhelming power, and especially his motivations and what he stands for add to his qualities as an antagonist and as a character.
15. Zeke
Manga: Attack On Titan
Zeke is one of the antagonists in the first half of the series but later ended up allying with the protagonist side. Honestly, I am not sure what Zeke is by the end of the series and that’s how Attack On Titan is.
Zeke in Beast Titan form is one of the scariest villains I have seen at the time of his introduction. Though the fear aspect went away as we got to know more about the Titans, his character became more nuanced and had depth. Finally, the aspect of him joining hands with Eren made him even more interesting.
14. Oikawa
Manga: Haikyuu
Oikawa is one of the recurring antagonists in the series Haikyuu. It feels odd to put him in this list where there are literal murderers but for the story of Haikyuu, he is an antagonist. Oikawa perfectly opposes Kageyama who is a natural prodigy with talents that far surpasses that of Oikawa.
Oikawa no matter how hard he works or how much he perfects his own skills can never match up to Kageyama in the long run. Yet he never stops and moves forward in hopes of reaching the same heights as those with natural talent. Oikawa’s character is one of the better portrayals of Talent vs Hardwork I have seen.
13. Riboku
Manga: Kingdom
Riboku is one of the recurring antagonists in the series, Kingdom. Riboku is a great general of Zhao and has to face Qin in several wars. His tactical skills are second to none as he was able to defeat even Ouki and is one of the strongest generals in the series tactically. Riboku is probably the most underrated character on the list.
Riboku is meticulous, intelligent, humble and a person who doesn’t go after fame and glory. His traits are something that usually heroes of the story would have. That is actually the beauty of Riboku for the story of the Kingdom.
Riboku being a good person reminds us that unification of China isn’t an altruistic goal. We have characters like Kanki on the protagonist side while Riboku is on the antagonist side. Riboku is the most sympathetic antagonist I have ever seen. He is just trying to save the people of his country and he himself doesn’t wish for wars to continue yet he serves as a wall against Ei Sei’s goal of unification of China.
12. Blackbeard
Manga: One Piece
Blackbeard is one of the most important antagonists of the series, One Piece. The main plotline involving Blackbeard is yet to be shown and it is crazy to think that he already has a claim here. His dynamic with Luffy is one of the most unique Hero-Villain dynamics I have seen in Anime. He acts like a real-life pirate in One Piece but also embodies some of the same personality traits that Luffy has.
Also in terms of growth, he is even ahead of Luffy in the world both in strength and fame. He is the mastermind behind the Marineford war itself. When his time comes in the story, he will become one of the greatest Manga antagonists of all time potentially breaking the top 5 in this list.
11. Friend
Manga: 20th Century boys
Friend is the primary antagonist of the series, 20th Century boys. He is the mysterious and charismatic leader of an unspecified religious cult and its political wing, the “Friendship Democratic Party,” a Japanese political party.
10. L
Manga: Death Note
L is the main antagonist of the series, Death Note. He is a world-renowned detective who is given the task of finding the identity of the mastermind behind the serial killings of the criminals, Kira. L becomes suspicious of Light Yagami and it becomes his goal to prove Kira is Light Yagami. He isn’t a bad person but is an antagonist of the series hence he finds a place here.
L – Light Yagami is one of the best antagonist-protagonist dynamics in anime. L is meticulous, intelligent, and regularly second-guesses everything. The display of intelligence shown by L is one of the best in anime.
9. Kira
Manga: Jojo’s Bizarre Adventures
Kira is the primary antagonist of the fourth part of the series, Jojo’s Bizarre Adventures. He is a serial killer with narcissistic and psychopathic personalities, with obsessive-compulsive tendencies. He wants to just live a quiet life away from the limelight and he even fakes his true talents and intelligence since his childhood times.
A serial killer with a fetish for women’s hands and also with magical powers, living normally like an ordinary person is a scary thing to think about. After facing the larger-than-life villains in Dio, and the Aztec Gods, it was refreshing to see Kira, a normal person who is living a quiet life as a villain.
8. Funny Valentine
Manga: Jojo’s Bizarre Adventures
Funny Valentine is the antagonist of the eighth part of the series, Jojo’s Bizarre Adventures. He is the 23rd President of the United States and the ultimate architect behind the Steel Ball Run race. From behind the curtains, he watches the competition and hopes to gather the Saint’s Corpse in order to utilize the holy relic to further the interests of the United States of America. He is also one of the strongest characters in Jojo series.
7. Ryofui
Manga: Kingdom
Ryofui will take seventh place in this list for his role as an antagonist in the series Kingdom. While Riboku opposes Ei Sei in the field, Ryofui opposes him in the court. Ryofui is a powerful merchant who reached the position of Chancellor through his intelligence and schemes.
Ryofui is intelligent, a schemer, and even managed to gain a following and strength that almost made him the king of Qin. He thinks several steps ahead and even dreamed of a kingdom that is based on a powerful economy instead of wars which is ahead of his time. His dynamic with Ei Sei is one of the most interesting things in the series.
6. Doflamingo
Manga: One Piece
Doflamingo from One Piece will take sixth place in this list. Doflamingo was a former member of the Seven Warlords of the Sea and also the captain of the Donquixote Pirates. He was the most influential underworld broker, a former Celestial Dragon, and former king of Dressrosa.
Doflamingo is the most complicated One Piece character so far. He is arrogant, prideful, intelligent, and jovial. His powers of puppetry also perfectly exemplify his personality of having everything under his control. Doflamingo-Corazon’s story also gives an insight into the debate of nature vs nurture in shaping one’s character. The only issue with him is he didn’t have the intimidating factor when his role as an antagonist came in Dressrosa.
5. Hisoka
Manga: Hunter X Hunter
Hisoka is a Hunter and a former member of Phantom Troupes. He is always trying to find strong opponents to fight and would spare those who have great potentials like Gon and Killua. Hisoka is selfish, a liar, a manipulator, and does things that he loves with no regard for anything else. He could also be very chaotic and unpredictable considering he even teamed up with Gon and Killua in Greed Island.
Hisoka isn’t a complicated character but is very unique and he has an X factor that is difficult to explain. Hisoka is one of the funniest villains that is also scary at the same time. Hisoka is truly one of his kind.
4. Pain
Manga: Naruto
Pain is probably the most important antagonist in the series, Naruto. Nagato was the leader of the most iconic anime villain organization Akatsuki and his aim was to bring peace to the Shinobi World through fear and control. He lost his parents due to war and also his best friend Yahiko. These things shaped his ideals and philosophy to be more extreme but also understandable.
Prophecies aren’t my favorite troupes but this series adds an interesting twist to it, by having Pain as a prophesized person in addition to Naruto. Naruto vs Pain isn’t just a battle of physical strength but also a battle of ideologies. I really liked Nagato’s conclusion of him getting his ideology changed due to Naruto’s speech.
He is also underrated in general considering Madara and Itachi are talked about way more than Pain.
3. Mereum
Manga: Hunter X Hunter
Next on the list is Mereum, the second entry from Hunter X Hunter in this list. Mereum is definitely the best Shonen Antagonist of all time for me. Mereum was born arrogant, violent, cruel, and is also one of the strongest characters in the series. He considers himself the superior being in the world and doesn’t even have sympathy for his mother when he was born.
But after meeting Komugi, he began to waver as he was never able to defeat her in Gungi. His heart starts to change and he began to question the nature of the world, humanity, etc. Mereum’s journey from an emotionless killer to someone who can actually show love for Komugi, and Gon’s journey from a happy-go-lucky kid to a monster that can kill someone without remorse are one of the best parallels between the antagonist and the protagonist in anime.
2. Griffith
Manga: Berserk
Griffith is the main antagonist of the series, Berserk. He is the leader of the reborn Band of the Falcon and also the supreme commander of the Midland Regular Army. Griffith is well-mannered, intelligent, strong, and would go to any length to achieve his dreams. He has had a strong sense of self and ambition since his childhood.
Griffith is complicated, to say the least. We can’t reduce his actions to just fate and causality but it does raise the question of free will vs determinism. Symbolism, character writing, ambiguous morality, humanity’s flaws, etc are all explored through Griffith.
The journey of Guts and Griffith is one of the best character writing one will ever experience. Griffith’s breakdown in the Golden Age arc is why it is considered the greatest Manga arc ever. There is a reason why Guts and Griffith are considered one of the greatest protagonists and antagonists respectively.
1. Johan Liebert
Manga: Monster
Johan Liebert is the main antagonist of the series, Monster and the second villain written by Urasawa that finds a place here. He is the older brother of Nina Fortner and as a young boy got saved from death by Tenma.
Johan is charismatic, intelligent, a schemer, and nihilistic. He uses his talent to manipulate and corrupt others to the point they would decide to kill themselves. It isn’t known what shaped him into being this nihilistic as his sister turned out to be a perfectly fine person even though she experienced far worse during their childhood.
Johan is without doubt the scariest villain in Manga. He has this supernatural phenomenon around him even though the series isn’t a fantasy and that makes him scary. His character conclusion is one of the best in Manga with him deciding to commit perfect suicide by dying along with everyone who knew him.
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