Random Greatest Anime Anti-Villains (13 items)

• 

  (#3) Shinobu Sensui

  One of the most unfair things about the Yu Yu Hakusho universe is that that it's perfectly fine to destroy demon lives, while humans are considered worthy of protection. This is because humans are seen as pure and defenseless, while demons and powerful and evil. Except, that isn't even remotely true - plenty of humans are powerful or cruel, while plenty of demons are weak or innocent.

  Shinobu Sensui, a former spirit detective, realizes this contradiction and is overcome with guilt at the number of demon lives he took without thinking. He decides that the only way to make up for it is to destroy humanity through opening up the demon gate. 

  Obviously, no one who seeks to do something so violent can be called a good guy - but his understanding that demons deserve to be treated like sentient beings is on point.
• 

  (#13) Kagemitsu Daigo - 'Dororo'

  Kagemitsu Daigo's behavior is appalling, but he didn't do it for no reason. He traded his first-born child's organs and limbs to a band of demons in exchange for bringing prosperity and peace to the formerly barren and wartorn land that he controlled - thus ensuring the survival of everyone there.

  While it's possible to argue that Daigo did what he did solely for the sake of personal power, it's also impossible to ignore the thousands of people who avoided starvation because of him. Is it fair to ask Hyakkimaru to make a sacrifice he wouldn't make on his own? Absolutely not - but that's exactly what makes him an anti-villain.
• 

  (#4) Archer - 'Fate: Unlimited Blade Works'

  Archer began as a heroic person who desperately wanted to save as many people from danger as humanly possible. However, because of the role he was forced to occupy, he's assigned the task of taking lives in order to protect humanity as a whole. This is utterly miserable for him, since he's a man of principle.

  In the midst of this difficult situation, he decides to take out Shirou Emiya, a version of himself from an alternate universe. He believes that this will ultimately prevent further catastrophe, but it casts him in the role of villain during one of the versions of Fate's extensive timeline. 
• 

  (#11) Kugaha - 'Noragami'

  Kugaha's serves as one of the main antagonists in the world of Noragami, but he actually has a pretty good reason for his behavior. He serves under a god called Bishamonten as a shinki - that is, a spirit who has been chosen by a god to fight in their service and transform into a weapon for their use. 

  Bishamonten has more shinki than she can handle. Not only does she need to provide for all of their physical needs, but she's also dramatically impacted by their emotions. When her shinki feel neglected, depressed, or anything else that's negative, she feels it physically in the form of an illness called blight. It gets so bad that Bishamonten is nearly nonfunctional. 

  Kugaha decides to rectify this state of affairs by taking Bishamonten's life so that she can be reincarnated into someone who won't take in every stray she can find and destroy herself in the process. Because he thinks of himself as one of the few shinki worth Bishamonten's time, he's fairly accused of arrogance - but he was also trying to save his goddess from herself. 
• 

  (#1) Itachi Uchiha

  • Naruto Shippūden, Naruto, Ninja World

  When he first appears, Itachi Uchiha seems to be one of the most vile villains imaginable. He took out his entire clan, leaving his younger brother Sasuke as the sole survivor. After that, he joined the Akatsuki, an organization known for wreaking havoc on innocent people.

  What could possibly be the explanation for such heinous acts? Itachi was actually attempting to prevent war and protect his younger brother. Danzo, the leader of an organization called Root, gives a then-13-year-old Itachi a choice. Either Danzo and the rest of Root would destroy his family for him, potentially sparking an all-out war that would implicate the entire city, or he could do it himself, sparing his own life, his brother's life, and that of the rest of the city. 

  While not everything Itachi does after that is perfectly calibrated toward maintaining peace, that is his ultimate goal - even if he has to commit atrocities to get there.
• 

  (#8) Shigure Sohma

  • Fruits Basket

  If you're new to Fruits Basket and aren't familiar with the manga, keep scrolling.

  If you have read the manga, you know that there's a lot more to Shigure than meets the eye. His goal is a reasonable one - he wants to break the curse that forces his family to transform into animals and keeps them bonded to Akito, the god who reigns terror over them all. Shigure wants this not just for the sake of his fellow Zodiac members, but for Akito, too - because the only thing in the world that he loves as much as himself is Akito.

  To achieve his laudable goal, Shigure constantly provokes people into having extreme emotional reactions, lies to and manipulates others, and sleeps with someone he really shouldn't have slept with - although that last one was as much due to petty jealousy as it was to any sort of noble purpose. 
   

New Random Displays    Display All By Ranking