THE TOP 4 VILLAINS BUT YOU CAN ONLY CHOOSE 1.
THE FIGHT
Light Yagami – Death Note
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Griffith – Berserk
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Askeladd – Vinland Saga
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Johan Liebert – Monster
THE FIGHT
Light Yagami – Death Note
Light Yagami is perhaps one of the most iconic and chilling villains in anime history, not because of his brutality, but because of how easily he slips into it. He begins the story as a high-achieving student with a rigid sense of justice. Upon gaining the Death Note, he convinces himself that he can create a utopia by killing criminals, thus purging the world of evil. But what makes Light dangerous is how quickly that ideal becomes twisted into a justification for power, ego, and tyranny.
As the body count rises, Light loses touch with his original goal. He begins killing anyone who threatens his plans, including innocents, allies, and even those who once believed in him. His transformation into Kira isn't just a descent into villainy—it's a corruption of idealism. He genuinely believes he is the chosen one, the god of the new world, even as he commits increasingly horrific acts.
What elevates Light as a villain is how grounded and believable his transformation feels. He's not driven by madness or supernatural influence; he’s consumed by pride and ambition, masked as justice. His fall serves as a haunting reflection of how power, especially when unchecked, can corrupt even the most intelligent and well-intentioned individuals.
As the body count rises, Light loses touch with his original goal. He begins killing anyone who threatens his plans, including innocents, allies, and even those who once believed in him. His transformation into Kira isn't just a descent into villainy—it's a corruption of idealism. He genuinely believes he is the chosen one, the god of the new world, even as he commits increasingly horrific acts.
What elevates Light as a villain is how grounded and believable his transformation feels. He's not driven by madness or supernatural influence; he’s consumed by pride and ambition, masked as justice. His fall serves as a haunting reflection of how power, especially when unchecked, can corrupt even the most intelligent and well-intentioned individuals.
VS
Griffith – Berserk
Griffith’s villainy is defined more by betrayal than conquest. He starts as the ultimate aspirational hero—a charismatic leader whose dream of his own kingdom is matched only by his courtly elegance. His rise through Guts’ Band of the Hawk inspires devotion, romance, and legends. That makes his eventual betrayal, aimed at achieving godhood at any cost, gut-wrenchingly potent.
The Eclipse event, where Griffith sacrifices his comrades to ascend into Femto, cements his darkness. His choice sacrifices personal relationships and humanity in pursuit of transcendence. That single, horrifying moment fractures the golden promise he once represented, and forever intoxicates the audience with his cold ambition.
Yet Griffith doesn’t vanish into evil archetype. Even after the eclipse, he remains painfully human—flawed, charming, caught between destiny and horror. Guts’ war with him—love turned vengeance—captures the heartbreak of dreams realized but at grotesque cost. Griffith doesn’t just win or lose—he tears the very world around him apart.
The Eclipse event, where Griffith sacrifices his comrades to ascend into Femto, cements his darkness. His choice sacrifices personal relationships and humanity in pursuit of transcendence. That single, horrifying moment fractures the golden promise he once represented, and forever intoxicates the audience with his cold ambition.
Yet Griffith doesn’t vanish into evil archetype. Even after the eclipse, he remains painfully human—flawed, charming, caught between destiny and horror. Guts’ war with him—love turned vengeance—captures the heartbreak of dreams realized but at grotesque cost. Griffith doesn’t just win or lose—he tears the very world around him apart.
VS
Askeladd – Vinland Saga
Askeladd is blood, brains, and buried regret. A Viking commander weaving allegiance and betrayal like weapons. Protector and assassin, father and killer, his identity is conflict incarnate. He trains Thorfinn not to lead—but to kill him. He rescues Canute not to follow—but to elevate. In every choice, his legacy mutates.
His greatest act isn’t war—it’s engineering. He orchestrates his death so Canute can rule, shaping a kinder world beyond vengeance. His plot is not destruction, but renaissance. His death is the seed of an ideal he never lives to see.
In Askeladd we see villainy that transcends itself—carrying history’s blood forward, seeking redemption through ruin. His final gambit is not defeat, but transcendence—village wiped, mission done, future born.
His greatest act isn’t war—it’s engineering. He orchestrates his death so Canute can rule, shaping a kinder world beyond vengeance. His plot is not destruction, but renaissance. His death is the seed of an ideal he never lives to see.
In Askeladd we see villainy that transcends itself—carrying history’s blood forward, seeking redemption through ruin. His final gambit is not defeat, but transcendence—village wiped, mission done, future born.
VS
Johan Liebert – Monster
Johan Liebert is terror in its purest human form—deceptively calm, eerily polite, and entirely empty. He’s not a villain driven by trauma or ideology, but by a cold, philosophical detachment from morality. Johan doesn’t commit evil to gain power or revenge—he wants to prove that life is meaningless, and that anyone, no matter how kind or stable, can be pushed to destroy.
Johan doesn’t use brute force—he uses persuasion, observation, and quiet nudges. He turns ordinary people into murderers just by talking to them, by understanding their insecurities better than they do themselves. The horror lies in how little he needs to do—he opens a door and watches people walk through it. Every death he causes is a reflection of the darkness that was already there.
What makes Johan unforgettable is his silence. He rarely needs to explain himself. Instead, he becomes a mirror—forcing those around him to confront the fragility of identity, morality, and sanity. In a story full of complex people, Johan stands at the center as a void, showing that the most terrifying monster is the one who proves we never needed a reason to fall.
Johan doesn’t use brute force—he uses persuasion, observation, and quiet nudges. He turns ordinary people into murderers just by talking to them, by understanding their insecurities better than they do themselves. The horror lies in how little he needs to do—he opens a door and watches people walk through it. Every death he causes is a reflection of the darkness that was already there.
What makes Johan unforgettable is his silence. He rarely needs to explain himself. Instead, he becomes a mirror—forcing those around him to confront the fragility of identity, morality, and sanity. In a story full of complex people, Johan stands at the center as a void, showing that the most terrifying monster is the one who proves we never needed a reason to fall.
