I was sitting around, watching my old Sailor Moon tapes, (because that’s what I like to do sometimes) and I was commenting on how “Evil Chaos” was, but not really all that scary. Then I began to think, well who WAS scary? And maybe not even scary, noteworthy? These probably aren’t the worst anime villians of all time, but they were good.

Sosuke Aizen.

Why?
Because of the sheer intelligence of this one man. Not only was he the very essence of diabolical, but he was meticulously evil, prideful, snooty, classy. Overbearingly arrogant, but never being discourteous. And let me expound on meticulous. The intricacies of his plot, which he never REALLY explained until the final moments, were extraordinary. No one ever really knew what Aizen was planning until he told you. His next move? Calculated and deftly planned. Every step accounted for until you know…he was overpowered, by the very thing he held the dearest.

Then he pulled this little juke move on us.

“I will not take your lives. With the measure of power that you possess you are unlikely even to lose consciousness from those wounds. Stay there, helpless and defeated and observe carefully as this battle reaches its conclusion.

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Onigumo / Naraku /

Why?
As with most anime villains, his maliciousness was masked behind a veil of beauty. But, however effeminate Naruku seemed, nothing outweighed his focus. A complete Shikon No Tama. An ultimate goal is a necessary evil when it comes to villains. But for Naraku it was his willingness to use every dirty trick in his book to get what he wanted. Slaughter of complete villages, pitting friends against each others, former lovers against each other, supposedly dead family members up against the one that survived. Hell, he even used a henchman that resembled a baby! All to corrupt the balance of the Shikon No Tama, that he got but neeeever quite “got”. And to get the girl…which he ended up killing.

“I will not kill you…I will break you!” (to Kikyo)”

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Orochimaru

No, I DON’T give a fuck. And I LOOK evil.

Why?
Because he ain’t give a fuck, that’s why. Orochimaru wanted to do what he wanted to do, and nothing else mattered. His former team, his clan, his village, his master. None of that mattered. He wanted to know ever jitsu known to man, and anybody be damned if they stepped in his way. This involved waking the dead, destroying his village, corrupting Young Sauske, Poor Anko, and poor poor Kimimaro (who was so geeked to have his body taken over I didn’t know WHAT to think.) He held no allegiance, and the closest thing he had to an ally was Kabuto (probably because he was batshit crazy as well). And then there are the snakes. *shudders*

“Everything… will be mine!””

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Vicious

Why?
Insane? Yeah. Bloodthirsty? Perhaps. Posessed some of that Orochimaru “Fuck it”. YES. Power-hungry and pure manifestation of his name, Vicious was a katana-wielding B.A.M.F. whose reputation was a glowering beacon of fear to anybody that crossed him or his path. Former partner to our protagonist, Spike, they fell out after Spike left the Red Dragons. Believing that he is Spike’s only equal rival; he places a bounty on Mao (a surrogate father) in order to bring him back to the surface? To do what? Kill him and anybody else who dares to oppose him.

“I’m the only one who can keep you alive. And I’m the only one who can kill you.”

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Shishio Makato

Why?
Here’s your insane villain. But not the complete loss of sanity villain. Shishio Makoto was always a bloodthirsty man, he thought processed revolving around the single thought that a sword was made for killing. A Sociopath used by the very same government to be a killing machine (not for the same idealistic reasons as his predecessor Battousai, but just because they knew he enjoyed killing). And when the war was over and they had no use for him? They burned him and left him for dead (mistake). With a charred mangled body, a bloodlust and countless connections, Shishio rose to the top of the infamy by challenging the entire Meiji government, to best some of the most legendary fighters of their period (including the Wolf and Kenshin himself) only to succumb to the death the government had planned for him from the very beginning.

“ I was burned, every inch of my body in pain shouting for death, and it’s hell. Now, do you think that hell is not here on earth? If hell is not here, then why the hell should I keep you alive?”

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Yukishiro Enishi

Why?
Unlike his villain-any predecessor, Enishi was completely driven to maddening revenge by heartbreak. A misunderstanding yes, but watching the death of his beloved sister at the hands of her husband, Kenshin, had tipped over the sanity jar. Tomoe was the only person Enishi had in the world, so it’s understandable that he would be devastated by losing her. But Enishi wasn’t devastated; it changed his world (his hair turning completely white from stress being one of the first indicators.) Enishi used his intelligence and connections to surround Kenshin and everyone he held dear, under his own brand of revenge called Jinchu. Here he meticulously mentally mindfucks with all of our main characters, Kenshin getting it the worst (yeah, I cried so what).

“My name is Yukishiro Enishi. You killed my sister. Prepare to die”

( Ha! Not really. Couldn’t find one I really liked.)

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Frieza

Why?
To tell you the truth, besides Sailor Moon, this was one of the main animes I watched as a child. Imagine being 11 years old, a girl, and then watching the introduction to one of the most fearsome villains a cartoon had ever seen? I was scared shitless. Then he did ALL THIS?

“BALD AND BOLD. OH MY, WHAT AM I TO DO!”

Oh you wasn’t scared? You lying.