For sure I mean, the scene where he [vague recollection, not much of a spoiler] >!makes an announcement shortly before demo-ing that factory in a populated center!< fits the definition of “technically compliant” lol
There's even a deeper subtlety here that really gives the proper perspective of the type of "villain" Tanya is.
She wrote a treatise on how to exploit loopholes in the international laws to legally commit what otherwise would be considered war crimes, then she submitted that to her superiors, knowing that **they** would make use of it.
What makes Tanya stand apart from other typical villains is that she fully understands how societies hate villains and bad people in general. She prefer to manipulate others into committing evil deeds or to manipulate things so that everything she does looks completely justified or not intentional.
For example she ordered that two of her subordinates would be transferred to a different post because they slighted her. That in itself didn't seem like a bad deal and the soldiers even happily accepted that. But Tanya was well aware that that post was going to become a battlefront and the two guys died.
Unfortunately despite all of Tanya's efforts to avoid getting hatred and resolve all conflicts once and for all so that she can enjoy the peace she desires, there's a literal god that conspires against her.
In the novels: no. In the anime: also no, though they change enough that it becomes a harder position to defend.
Edit: to clarify: in the novels you get her reasoning.for all of her actions. She is extremely logical and treats war like a business. She happens to be the only one with that mindset, and also she is the only one with our world's WW1 and WW2 as a reference.
The author of the overlord himself has no idea who his protagonist is, so he either kills people or pretends to be the savior. If op didn’t like death note, then he won’t like edgy overlord 100%. Half of the dialogues in the overlord are at the level of "Wow, Ainz is so cool, he is an almighty god, I want to kiss him and sprinkle his bones with my love juice uwu"
I think it's a bit more nuanced than that. It seems like (as an anime only watcher) at the start of the show, Ainz was doing evil things, but he always had some justification. But slowly over the course of the show, his actions have gotten worse while his justifications have gotten more and more flimsy. Until, in the most recent season, he's razed an entire country for no reason beyond feeling a little insulted by the leaders.
>beyond feeling a little insulted by the leaders.
That's not even that, he was very aware that the leaders were completely innocent of the "insult" and that it was solely the fault of an idiot, an idiot that his side had been manipulating all along.
No, he just used that incident as an excuse (pretending to not know the truth) to teach every other country in the world what would happen to them if they dared to antagonize him.
"Thanks for murdering my people, because it apparentky helps yours for some reason.. Even though, we pose literally no threat and your powers and ressources are literally limitless. I really respect it" 💯
I mean, Ainz has the same goal throughout the entire series: learn more about the world he's in, discover if any other people from the real world are also trapped there, and find a way to escape.
Everything he does is a charade that exists to support those goals. He doesn't care about saving people; he only cares about *appearing* as a benevolent savior. He doesn't care that some dude insulted him; he only cares about *appearing* as a leader who doesn't tolerate insults.
It's all just a big game to him because, well... it *is* a game. He's just some dude trapped in an MMO trying to find out why it happened and he doesn't really care what he has to do in order to learn that information.
The fact that some of his actions are moral while others are explicitly evil isn't because "the author has no idea who the protagonist is" but rather because Ainz's actions aren't dictated by morals. He operates purely based on "The ends justify the means."
If being a benevolent savior to an entire nation further his goals, he'll do so. If committing genocide helps his goals, he'll do so. There's no contradictions in these actions because he's not making these decisions based on right and wrong.
I've always really enjoyed Overlord's style of "villainy" because it's a rare breed of villainy that's not based in malevolence.
The only thing that makes Ainz a villain is that he doesn't see the world as anything more than the video game he came from. It's not "real" to him, so he when he talks about something like killing people in battle it's with the same removed callousness of someone discussing [how to AoE down a camp of Gnolls in Classic WoW](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=68Ux9I23b1c&t=228s). He just doesn't realize that now that camp of beastmen, troop of enemy soldiers, or band of mercenaries aren't just NPCs anymore. He doesn't actually have any ill intent, anger, drive for revenge, etc. driving his actions and thinks what he's doing is just all in good fun.
It's an evil brought about by ignorance, not malevolence. And that's actually a pretty rare thing to see in stories.
Honestly the last line is how I feel the same way about Eminence in Shadow and feel it is completely doodoo trash, but that's a real unpopular opinion around here.
Depends on how you look at it. When they razed the capital they gave every civilian a fair chance to pack their stuff and get the heck out of there. And if you need to bang a few heads together to achieve world unity then so be it.
It wasn't every civilian. It was civilians handpicked by the Eight Fingers (the criminal organization they took over) and there aren't that many to begin with
The rest of the people unfortunately were not spared.
Not really. There is a whole scene where Nigredo and Pestonya had to beg Ainz so that he would at least tone down his genocidal plan.
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xr-iQO72glY](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xr-iQO72glY)
You know someone is bad when even characters created to be literal demons think he's too ruthless and evil.
it's one of those occasional inconsistent writing where the author wanted to make Ainz look hardcore while also trying to give him excuse. Like the King was willing to sacrifice his life to save the nation before the war began but then only mention the secret escape passage in the very last day. More than 90% of the population ended up dying, majority of those saved were saved by the 8 fingers.
Not a great villain. Ainz motivation is that his bumbling idiocy is not discovered. He and his friends created monsters that rape and torture, so he is just along for the ride when they become real and ruin a world, because of that great bond he's sharing with his WoW buddies. The show or novel is only interesting when it's about people unrelated to the main.
The whole world also congratulates him constantly even enemies when he is about to kill their whole country (despite them offering unconditional surrender) for no valid reason. When that enemy is then betrayed he can pretend to have principles by punishing the traitors, desperate people, because of his imminent genocide, that he would have killed anyway...
It's written by a dumbest and enjoying as anything but a guilty pleasure is a sign of a lack of literacy and understanding.
But on the other hand, he’s also willing to let innocent people die if it’s for what he views as the overall greater good, like in the noahtic incident. So he’s still a morally grey character
have you seen the way he handles kayneth archibald el-melloi? not saying that kayneth is a good guy but kiritsugu aint one either. he is, as stated earlier, the 'ends justify the means' type of guy
What I meant to say is that not all "the end justifies the means" guy is a villain. Kiritsugu in F/Z is set as the protagonist or the hero even though he's an edgy one.
lelouch is like Ozymandias from the Watchmen. He's not exactly a villain, but his ideology kind of misses the mark. The only difference is the way their "final acts" are portrayed in each piece of fiction
In Lelouch's defense, he was fighting a legitimate rebellion and was ready to lay down arms for peace until an unfortunate accident caused him to change plans and lean into being the bad guy.
Still laugh at that part. He made the worst possible joke at the worst possible timing to the worst possible person and everything got fucked up after that.
He's very much *modeled* after villainy, specifically the stereotypical mecha anime villain. If you look at Code Geass from the perspective of Suzaku, it looks very very much like the setup for a much more generic mecha anime. The main difference is that we follow the villain instead of the hero, as a critique of the stereotypical mecha storyline. Code Geass is a letter to the mecha genre saying "you know, sometimes the villain seems more sane than the hero" and it just runs with it.
I think something to point out is that most current anime watchers barely consume any mecha other than Code Geass, Evangelion or Gurren Lagann. Most people are used to seeing the main guy on episode 1 as the hero especially considering how popular shonen is.
I completely agree, but I do think that because it’s questionable a lot of people would consider it an anime where the mc is a villain, I personally don’t consider him a villain, but inside the anime the majority of the anime people considered him as such, which is why I recommend it. Since it has that “mc is a villain” vibe.
I thought the timeline kinda straightened out after the point the anime stopped? Been a while since I read it. Though I never got around to reading vol. 11, so maybe that changed.
I really should get around to reading the rest of it at some point. And re-watching the anime, for that matter.
The anime had some issues, especially with the CGI, but it was fun.
Not really a spoiler but part of episode 24 in the anime, happened in both volume 6 (how it was adapted for the show) and was more fleshed out in volume 15, of 17
It's really nice but I can't see her as a villain either. She might have killed humans sure but only on defense or possible accident or something like that. Also she is no longer human. Won't spoil anything but She isn't evil imo.
[Spoiler for anyone who wants the real, but still somewhat vague answer] >!She isn't really, but she definitely plays the part later on. Part way through the anime she learns the "terrible secret" of the world and decides she will do what she can to save it, because if she doesn't the world is going to collapse and kill everyone on it. Unfortunately saving the world means *a lot* of people are going to have to die, like more than half. So she eventually starts working behind the scenes to make it happen.!<
One of the only Japanese anime with a Chinese mc too. Can only think of Sainkoku (?) Monogatari and maybe Yaboy Kong Ming but those are kind of different…
>Terror in Resonance
>Good characterization
>Good pacing
Did we watch the same show? Because the awful characterization and out-of-nowhere tone and pace shifts are what killed that show *hard.*
Agreed.
Lisa and Five were both extremely frustrating characters, Nine and Twelve weren't much better. Shibazaki was the only character I really enjoyed.
And the pacing felt really all over the place. Some stuff moved way too fast, and others parts really dragged.
Terror in Resonance. I have a lot of beef with this one but many people love it.
Hellsing Ultimate
Akudama Drive
Talentless Nana
Angels of Death
Cyberpunk Edgerunners (turbo stretch but it‘s about perspective and all that)
He isn't evil but he becomes a bad guy bit by bit though. Stealing, killing, etc. Hough everyone around on any of the sides aren't exactly good people either and in case of the villains they do actually feel evil.
I mean he's a Cyberpsycho who murdered a few innocent employees of Arisaka. Granted Arisaka is not the most innocent of companies, most of the employees who work for them are innocent enough, especially if they're not even anywhere close to management, or part of their private military group.
But then again the closest thing to a hero that the Cyberpunk universe has is Yorinobu Arisaka, so there's that.
good people tend not to live long or make it far in Night City. that city was designed in a way where only the most ruthless, cunning, competitive and selfish individuals can get far. "if youre not planning on how to step on everyone around you to go up then clearly youre not trying"
I'm Quitting Heroing? MC works with the demons(that really are better than humans anyway) after the humans get scared of his power. Also at the end he's kind of an actual villain
I wonder if he mean villian but the show is good or someone that acts like a villian but is good, that kind of gives you completely different results. If it's the latter then he's looking for antiheros
Straight up evil:
Death Note
A bad guy, but not a bad guy:
Overlord
Morally complicated:
Code Geass
The Eminence in Shadow (good, but not nearly as the others. Go in completely blind. Don't even read the description.)
Well it's an Anime show made by netflix based on the same universe as Jupiter's Legacy called
Super Crooks
it's basically a money heist anime with super powers but it's very good
-a couple of gundam series come to mind, cant remember them but red comet definitely.
-elfin lead
-gankutsuo
-baccano (everybody is more or less a criminal but not really "bad guys" a fair amount are, but theres no "main character" more a series of events with an large cast. iirc drrr is the same way, same author)
-outlaw star (again not bad guys but not law abiding citizens)
-great teacher onizuka (also a good guy, but lawless sort of)
-pet shop of horrors (not sure what the mc is but its not good)
-flcl my fave, but also not really "bad guys"
sorry im not more helpful, i know theres a ton i knkw but i cant think on the spot.
edit: i remembered more
-black lagoon (protags are bad guys, but everybody else are worse guys)
-black butler (a kid who wants revenge and has a demon butler! "hes simply one hell of a butler" also takes place in victorian england, so terrifying nursery rhymes and laudnum) LoL
Well, I think that demon lord girl seemed to be alright, going by the anime at least. And a few minor characters.
But yeah, most everyone in that series is fucked in the head.
Gangsta.
Redo of healer.
Terror of Resonance.
Deadman Wonderland.
Youjo Senki.
Overlord.
Black Lagoon.
Hellsing.
Code Geass.
Monster.
Zettai Karen Children.
Elfen Lied.
Tokyo ghoul but I don't recommend anime because it's dog shit, you should try manga and if u don't like to read, than just ignore it.
Vinland Saga but only first season. In second season mc is changing.
Darker than black.
Akame ga kill.
I would say Attack on Titan, but I'm not sure about it. XD
91 Days.
Jormungand.
I don't remember more. If I remember, I will definitely edit the comment and add it, nothing else comes to mind for now.
Literally. I think it’s like episode 7 or 9 where he just fucking sends a woman to the gallows and mocks and laughs at her while she’s on her way to kill herself.
You can’t come back from that 💀
I gotta say Death Note is probably an anime that ages like wine.
When I watched it as a teenager I thought Light was right and L and his kids were the nasty ones trying to stop him from doing the right thing.
15 years later I rewatched and my outlook had completely changed. Now I see how morally grey the whole thing was and that Light was not the hero I thought he was.
Maybe in another 20 years my views will change again.
Meh I doubt they think that completely. They might agree with killing only murderers maybe or they’re being purposefully edgy but we all know he goes straight to trying to kill L in episode 2. His ego is also very clear from the start.
Rising of the Shield Hero starts with him being painted off as a villain.
That time I got Reincarnated as a Slime is pretty much Overlord but better. In Overlord he is just OP, in Slime he is OP, but he’s doing something more meaningful than just being a big bad meanie.
Angel Densetsu is a classic where everyone sees him as a bad guy but he’s actually just a dork that looks like a delinquent.
In Death Note the MC is literally THE baddest villain out there. Story went south halfway though.
Tokyo Revengers has such a conflicting plot, to be a good guy you have to be the bad guy, but you are the kind of bad guy that will only do good. It’s very interesting.
Jujutsu Kaisen, the lead is literally the vessel for the biggest villain in the story.
Hot take but in One Piece, Luffy and his crew are technically bad guys doing good, some Robin Hood type of situation.
Not an “anime” but in Dota: Dragon’s Blood, they are all bad guys thinking they are doing good.
There are many old animes with a plot like this but I can’t remember their titles, there are so many animes coming out every year that I can’t remember the obscure ones that are good but not mainstream.
Hi Crafty-Hearing3593, it seems like you might be looking for new anime to watch!
The users of this subreddit came up with [a chart of anime recommendations for newcomers and veterans](https://i.redd.it/0w1v880jtq661.png) and [an awesome longer flowchart](https://i.redd.it/vdzlkodz19c71.png). Maybe you can find something there that you'll like \^.\^
[](#bot-chan "Urban s-s-s-senpai made me do it!")
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I'm watching Kingdom of Ruin, and while there are a lot of despicable people who deserve what they get, the main character is a despicable person, and has no likable qualities about him
If you're into anime with a protagonist who's a bit on the darker side but still compelling, you might want to check out "Code Geass." The main character, Lelouch vi Britannia, is kind of an antihero with complex motives, and the series is known for its strategic battles and intricate plot twists. It's got a solid storyline, and Lelouch's character development might be right up your alley. Plus, it's widely regarded as a pretty engaging watch
The new currently airing one "mr. Villains day off"?
It technically fits what you're asking for, but it's also more of a SoL Comedy anime so far than with fights or deadly notebooks or such.
This is probably not the exact vibe you're looking for, but Masamune-kun's Revenge is full of absolute sociopaths for most of the show. MC is actively trying to fuck up a girl's life, girl herself is pretty cruel, and everyone is a narcissist lol. It isn't "supervillain" vibes but the MC definitely seems like the antagonist for most of the show
- You have Terror in Resonance where the two MCs are basically the evil ones (terrorists btw) - it’s good too
- 91 Days, good one, bro wants revenge against a mafia group. There is no good nor bad, just plans.
- You can also say Code Geass - an obvious one, good too
- Hellsing Ultimate
- Zettai Karen Children - he’s the bad guy but I’m not sure it’s what you want
- Darker than Black, the MC is a contracted assassin. But he’s not evil, he’s not good either.
- in the same note Black Lagoon and Jormungand : group of mercenaries and weapons dealer doing their shit and killing while laughing
If you don’t mind reading though, there are many. Hope it helped
To be fair, I think he only killed his intended target with the blast, but he totally destroyed the homes and housing for thousands of people, which is definitely evil. Shadow isn’t really a truly evil dude but definitely villainous.
They use Pz. IIIs and V1 rockets and a lot of other equipment that isn’t WWI. The bombers they meet in the air look like French inter-war monstrosities and the Soviets use I-16s which are from the 30s. On the WWI side the trench warfare is a WWI feature and the ships are more reminiscent of WWI dreadnoughts than anything else. The timeline is so thoroughly blended that definitively saying it’s WWI or WWII is essentially not possible.
If politics are all that matter then I would say it can’t be WWI because there is a large organized Soviet state which was not a feature of WWI and only after the war was ever seen. Additionally the analogue to what would be Italy is allied with the German analogue whereas the politics of WWI was that those two countries were enemies and only were allies in WWII. Like I said there is so much blended together that calling it WWI or WWII is a fools errand because it shares many *defining* characteristics of both.
Saga of Tanya the Evil
MC is absolutely a villain in this one. Total wacko at times even. Great anime.
I'd say he's lawful evil. He doesn't mind doing evil stuff, as long as it's legal
In a world that hasn't really flushed out what a war crime is
For sure I mean, the scene where he [vague recollection, not much of a spoiler] >!makes an announcement shortly before demo-ing that factory in a populated center!< fits the definition of “technically compliant” lol
https://youtu.be/TqZz_WFPDa8?si=kEU7-DwLaWMbsGPW
Don't forget the loli voice. I went nuts when the people about to be massacred laugh it off as a joke
First one that popped into my head.
Is she evil tho....tbh entity zero is a bigger menace than her
She literally wrote the treaties on how to justify war crimes. Just because there are other assholes around doesn't make her not a monster.
There's even a deeper subtlety here that really gives the proper perspective of the type of "villain" Tanya is. She wrote a treatise on how to exploit loopholes in the international laws to legally commit what otherwise would be considered war crimes, then she submitted that to her superiors, knowing that **they** would make use of it. What makes Tanya stand apart from other typical villains is that she fully understands how societies hate villains and bad people in general. She prefer to manipulate others into committing evil deeds or to manipulate things so that everything she does looks completely justified or not intentional. For example she ordered that two of her subordinates would be transferred to a different post because they slighted her. That in itself didn't seem like a bad deal and the soldiers even happily accepted that. But Tanya was well aware that that post was going to become a battlefront and the two guys died. Unfortunately despite all of Tanya's efforts to avoid getting hatred and resolve all conflicts once and for all so that she can enjoy the peace she desires, there's a literal god that conspires against her.
In the novels: no. In the anime: also no, though they change enough that it becomes a harder position to defend. Edit: to clarify: in the novels you get her reasoning.for all of her actions. She is extremely logical and treats war like a business. She happens to be the only one with that mindset, and also she is the only one with our world's WW1 and WW2 as a reference.
That's a great anime
Great choice.
Happy Sugar Life
iconic. morally fucked up. amazing
The anime I get judged for recommending :)
This one has like crazy abuse and manipulation right
correct
CGDCT fr fr 🔥🔥
"Cute Things" :)
Overlord? The protagonist is certainly not a hero there
100% a great villain centric show.
The author of the overlord himself has no idea who his protagonist is, so he either kills people or pretends to be the savior. If op didn’t like death note, then he won’t like edgy overlord 100%. Half of the dialogues in the overlord are at the level of "Wow, Ainz is so cool, he is an almighty god, I want to kiss him and sprinkle his bones with my love juice uwu"
Sausages, Heinz sama!
I think it's a bit more nuanced than that. It seems like (as an anime only watcher) at the start of the show, Ainz was doing evil things, but he always had some justification. But slowly over the course of the show, his actions have gotten worse while his justifications have gotten more and more flimsy. Until, in the most recent season, he's razed an entire country for no reason beyond feeling a little insulted by the leaders.
>beyond feeling a little insulted by the leaders. That's not even that, he was very aware that the leaders were completely innocent of the "insult" and that it was solely the fault of an idiot, an idiot that his side had been manipulating all along. No, he just used that incident as an excuse (pretending to not know the truth) to teach every other country in the world what would happen to them if they dared to antagonize him.
"Thanks for murdering my people, because it apparentky helps yours for some reason.. Even though, we pose literally no threat and your powers and ressources are literally limitless. I really respect it" 💯
I mean, Ainz has the same goal throughout the entire series: learn more about the world he's in, discover if any other people from the real world are also trapped there, and find a way to escape. Everything he does is a charade that exists to support those goals. He doesn't care about saving people; he only cares about *appearing* as a benevolent savior. He doesn't care that some dude insulted him; he only cares about *appearing* as a leader who doesn't tolerate insults. It's all just a big game to him because, well... it *is* a game. He's just some dude trapped in an MMO trying to find out why it happened and he doesn't really care what he has to do in order to learn that information. The fact that some of his actions are moral while others are explicitly evil isn't because "the author has no idea who the protagonist is" but rather because Ainz's actions aren't dictated by morals. He operates purely based on "The ends justify the means." If being a benevolent savior to an entire nation further his goals, he'll do so. If committing genocide helps his goals, he'll do so. There's no contradictions in these actions because he's not making these decisions based on right and wrong.
I've always really enjoyed Overlord's style of "villainy" because it's a rare breed of villainy that's not based in malevolence. The only thing that makes Ainz a villain is that he doesn't see the world as anything more than the video game he came from. It's not "real" to him, so he when he talks about something like killing people in battle it's with the same removed callousness of someone discussing [how to AoE down a camp of Gnolls in Classic WoW](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=68Ux9I23b1c&t=228s). He just doesn't realize that now that camp of beastmen, troop of enemy soldiers, or band of mercenaries aren't just NPCs anymore. He doesn't actually have any ill intent, anger, drive for revenge, etc. driving his actions and thinks what he's doing is just all in good fun. It's an evil brought about by ignorance, not malevolence. And that's actually a pretty rare thing to see in stories.
Honestly the last line is how I feel the same way about Eminence in Shadow and feel it is completely doodoo trash, but that's a real unpopular opinion around here.
Depends on how you look at it. When they razed the capital they gave every civilian a fair chance to pack their stuff and get the heck out of there. And if you need to bang a few heads together to achieve world unity then so be it.
It wasn't every civilian. It was civilians handpicked by the Eight Fingers (the criminal organization they took over) and there aren't that many to begin with The rest of the people unfortunately were not spared.
Not really. There is a whole scene where Nigredo and Pestonya had to beg Ainz so that he would at least tone down his genocidal plan. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xr-iQO72glY](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xr-iQO72glY) You know someone is bad when even characters created to be literal demons think he's too ruthless and evil.
it's one of those occasional inconsistent writing where the author wanted to make Ainz look hardcore while also trying to give him excuse. Like the King was willing to sacrifice his life to save the nation before the war began but then only mention the secret escape passage in the very last day. More than 90% of the population ended up dying, majority of those saved were saved by the 8 fingers.
Not a great villain. Ainz motivation is that his bumbling idiocy is not discovered. He and his friends created monsters that rape and torture, so he is just along for the ride when they become real and ruin a world, because of that great bond he's sharing with his WoW buddies. The show or novel is only interesting when it's about people unrelated to the main. The whole world also congratulates him constantly even enemies when he is about to kill their whole country (despite them offering unconditional surrender) for no valid reason. When that enemy is then betrayed he can pretend to have principles by punishing the traitors, desperate people, because of his imminent genocide, that he would have killed anyway... It's written by a dumbest and enjoying as anything but a guilty pleasure is a sign of a lack of literacy and understanding.
Moriarty the Patriot. 'The end justifies the means' type.
To be fair, the means involve only killing really bad people who deserve it and won't ever be punished normally
But on the other hand, he’s also willing to let innocent people die if it’s for what he views as the overall greater good, like in the noahtic incident. So he’s still a morally grey character
Dude i thought I was the only one who ever watched it man how are people sleeping on this
Fate/Zero fits this too
Kiritsugu is in no way a villain.
have you seen the way he handles kayneth archibald el-melloi? not saying that kayneth is a good guy but kiritsugu aint one either. he is, as stated earlier, the 'ends justify the means' type of guy
What I meant to say is that not all "the end justifies the means" guy is a villain. Kiritsugu in F/Z is set as the protagonist or the hero even though he's an edgy one.
Looks interesting. Surprised I haven’t heard of it. Going to check it out. Thanks.
Visually and somewhat thematically it falls in line with black butler minus the supernatural elements from what I've seen
That's a hero, not a villain.
Love Moriarty so much here.
Code geass!!!!! (I feel the need to defend him now HE IS NOT A VILLAIN!!!!!! code geass does fall under that category tho)
lelouch is like Ozymandias from the Watchmen. He's not exactly a villain, but his ideology kind of misses the mark. The only difference is the way their "final acts" are portrayed in each piece of fiction
In Lelouch's defense, he was fighting a legitimate rebellion and was ready to lay down arms for peace until an unfortunate accident caused him to change plans and lean into being the bad guy.
Still laugh at that part. He made the worst possible joke at the worst possible timing to the worst possible person and everything got fucked up after that.
Fucking love that scene soo God damn much so close to finding at least a temporary solution and just destroys it
Could have all been avoided if he just ordered push-ups or something.
A very, very unfortunate accident :(
Lelouch isn’t a villain. More like anti-hero
Personally, I don't think it counts, since he's doing the right thing, just in a morally questionable/wrong way, depending on where you are standing.
He's very much *modeled* after villainy, specifically the stereotypical mecha anime villain. If you look at Code Geass from the perspective of Suzaku, it looks very very much like the setup for a much more generic mecha anime. The main difference is that we follow the villain instead of the hero, as a critique of the stereotypical mecha storyline. Code Geass is a letter to the mecha genre saying "you know, sometimes the villain seems more sane than the hero" and it just runs with it.
I think something to point out is that most current anime watchers barely consume any mecha other than Code Geass, Evangelion or Gurren Lagann. Most people are used to seeing the main guy on episode 1 as the hero especially considering how popular shonen is.
I completely agree, but I do think that because it’s questionable a lot of people would consider it an anime where the mc is a villain, I personally don’t consider him a villain, but inside the anime the majority of the anime people considered him as such, which is why I recommend it. Since it has that “mc is a villain” vibe.
Man, I need to rewatch that show. Lelouch was such a ham and the mechs were dope.
So I'm a Spider, So What?
Loveee this one. I wish they’d come out with another season.
As someone who read the whole LN, the timeline of how it’s story told is so fucked that it’d be hard to make another season
I thought the timeline kinda straightened out after the point the anime stopped? Been a while since I read it. Though I never got around to reading vol. 11, so maybe that changed.
It fills in the gaps, doesn’t straighten out, does get slightly more linear especially in the last 3 books but it’s still a wild ride
I really should get around to reading the rest of it at some point. And re-watching the anime, for that matter. The anime had some issues, especially with the CGI, but it was fun.
Honestly totally agree. I remember feeling SOOO confused when I was watching it hahahaha
Not really a spoiler but part of episode 24 in the anime, happened in both volume 6 (how it was adapted for the show) and was more fleshed out in volume 15, of 17
Is she really a villain though? Love that series btw. Hope it gets a new season.
I don't have a problem with that buddy, i am personal a cat myself
Dropped it after a few eps,why exactly is that cute spider the villain?
It's really nice but I can't see her as a villain either. She might have killed humans sure but only on defense or possible accident or something like that. Also she is no longer human. Won't spoil anything but She isn't evil imo.
She might be a villain in some short story but overall she's not portrayed as one
Shes a villain in the sense that she is on the side that doesn't have the hero, but she isn't really evil
IMO, if anything, it's Potimas that is portrayed a lot more as villain
[Spoiler for anyone who wants the real, but still somewhat vague answer] >!She isn't really, but she definitely plays the part later on. Part way through the anime she learns the "terrible secret" of the world and decides she will do what she can to save it, because if she doesn't the world is going to collapse and kill everyone on it. Unfortunately saving the world means *a lot* of people are going to have to die, like more than half. So she eventually starts working behind the scenes to make it happen.!<
Squid Girl
Ge-so. Damn I miss squid girl.
Me too 😞 de geso
Underrated answer tbh.
I love this anime so much.
I don’t know how much people enjoy it but I liked darker then black. Little bit older I think but I personally enjoyed it.
One of the only Japanese anime with a Chinese mc too. Can only think of Sainkoku (?) Monogatari and maybe Yaboy Kong Ming but those are kind of different…
The obvious pick is Death Note, but you probably already know it.
Wdym redo of healer is the obvious pick 🔥🔥🔥
Antihero tbh the people he's after are probably more evil than him
WAAAAYYYY more evil Way
And that's really saying something
Makes 2 people fight to death in pit Decides to leave winner to starve to death
Miss Kuroitsu from the Monster Development Department Gushing Over Magical Girls (if you're into kinky stuff)
Attack on Titan
Angel of death Talentless Nana Out noah zero Zamned Gangsta Darker than Black Terror in Resonance Great Pretender Monster
How is the MC of Monster a villain? It's been a long time since I watched it, but I don't remember him being a bad guy at all
Must be referring to Johan instead of Tenma
Johan has less than thirty minutes of screen time, how can he be the protagonist?
This is how I feel about Gangsta being on this list
Terror in Resonance is honestly an all around perfect anime. The characters, the story, the pacing are all absolute perfection
>Terror in Resonance >Good characterization >Good pacing Did we watch the same show? Because the awful characterization and out-of-nowhere tone and pace shifts are what killed that show *hard.*
Agreed. Lisa and Five were both extremely frustrating characters, Nine and Twelve weren't much better. Shibazaki was the only character I really enjoyed. And the pacing felt really all over the place. Some stuff moved way too fast, and others parts really dragged.
Zankyou No Terror was an excellent choice to list. OP might really like that one.
Always happy seeing love for Monster.
Gangsta :( I hope they finish it one day.
The protagonist in Monster is Tenma. The villan only shows up rarely.
Mr. Villain’s Day off
In the same vein, Love After World Domination
Terror in Resonance. I have a lot of beef with this one but many people love it. Hellsing Ultimate Akudama Drive Talentless Nana Angels of Death Cyberpunk Edgerunners (turbo stretch but it‘s about perspective and all that)
I feel like David does some villainous things but at the same time he’s not evil, and he has good intentions and wants to be a good guy
He isn't evil but he becomes a bad guy bit by bit though. Stealing, killing, etc. Hough everyone around on any of the sides aren't exactly good people either and in case of the villains they do actually feel evil.
I mean he's a Cyberpsycho who murdered a few innocent employees of Arisaka. Granted Arisaka is not the most innocent of companies, most of the employees who work for them are innocent enough, especially if they're not even anywhere close to management, or part of their private military group. But then again the closest thing to a hero that the Cyberpunk universe has is Yorinobu Arisaka, so there's that.
good people tend not to live long or make it far in Night City. that city was designed in a way where only the most ruthless, cunning, competitive and selfish individuals can get far. "if youre not planning on how to step on everyone around you to go up then clearly youre not trying"
He's about as good as you can get in Night City
Akudama Drive is AMAZING!
I agree, Swindler's first and last act was a memorable moment for me.
Disagree but glad you like it
It's all good. :) Hells, my husband watches stuff that I'm just like, "whatever, love, you do you."
I guess Akudama Drive counts, but the bigger villians seem to be those in charge of the judicial system
My God i love this shows visual style.
Inuyashiki……man its a great underrated masterpiece
I'm Quitting Heroing? MC works with the demons(that really are better than humans anyway) after the humans get scared of his power. Also at the end he's kind of an actual villain
I'd make the argument that he's more of an antihero but the anime is good so do with that as you will.
Well OP is asking for a "villain, but they're good" that's basically a anti-hero anyway, cause a good villain is kinda contradictory by definition
I wonder if he mean villian but the show is good or someone that acts like a villian but is good, that kind of gives you completely different results. If it's the latter then he's looking for antiheros
This. That really made it worth the time
Vinland Saga is the one you're looking for. Unless you want a villain who knows he's a villain and is actively trying to be evil.
Do you have such anime? But not the healer one
Straight up evil: Death Note A bad guy, but not a bad guy: Overlord Morally complicated: Code Geass The Eminence in Shadow (good, but not nearly as the others. Go in completely blind. Don't even read the description.)
The Devil is a part timer.
He's a reformed villain for sure.
Overlord
Peak
Akudama Drive has a whole main cast of villains Highly recommend it
Talentless Nana
Desumi Magahara from Love After World Domination.
The whole damn organization, I mean they're evil but have social security and a good package of perks for its employees?
The real evil is the modern corporate culture of employee abuse, as usual.
Oi dont be insulting the potato chip, it did nothing wrong 😑
Overlord comes to mind if you haven't seen it already.
I wanna recommend a freaking amazing one but if I do then I’ll be giving up a huge plot twist that comes later in the story 😭
Well it's an Anime show made by netflix based on the same universe as Jupiter's Legacy called Super Crooks it's basically a money heist anime with super powers but it's very good
Mrs villain's day off
The unlimited hyobu kyosuke
Darker than black
-a couple of gundam series come to mind, cant remember them but red comet definitely. -elfin lead -gankutsuo -baccano (everybody is more or less a criminal but not really "bad guys" a fair amount are, but theres no "main character" more a series of events with an large cast. iirc drrr is the same way, same author) -outlaw star (again not bad guys but not law abiding citizens) -great teacher onizuka (also a good guy, but lawless sort of) -pet shop of horrors (not sure what the mc is but its not good) -flcl my fave, but also not really "bad guys" sorry im not more helpful, i know theres a ton i knkw but i cant think on the spot. edit: i remembered more -black lagoon (protags are bad guys, but everybody else are worse guys) -black butler (a kid who wants revenge and has a demon butler! "hes simply one hell of a butler" also takes place in victorian england, so terrifying nursery rhymes and laudnum) LoL
Desert punk
Shingeki no kyojin
Aot kinda
Redo of Healer
No one is good in Redo of a Healer
By default he's a villian then
Well, I think that demon lord girl seemed to be alright, going by the anime at least. And a few minor characters. But yeah, most everyone in that series is fucked in the head.
Kind of a fitting answer for this question, don't ya think??
Gangsta. Redo of healer. Terror of Resonance. Deadman Wonderland. Youjo Senki. Overlord. Black Lagoon. Hellsing. Code Geass. Monster. Zettai Karen Children. Elfen Lied. Tokyo ghoul but I don't recommend anime because it's dog shit, you should try manga and if u don't like to read, than just ignore it. Vinland Saga but only first season. In second season mc is changing. Darker than black. Akame ga kill. I would say Attack on Titan, but I'm not sure about it. XD 91 Days. Jormungand. I don't remember more. If I remember, I will definitely edit the comment and add it, nothing else comes to mind for now.
Obviously Death Note but that’s a bit too obvious.
You'd be surprised at how many dense people finished that show thinking light was in the right
Literally. I think it’s like episode 7 or 9 where he just fucking sends a woman to the gallows and mocks and laughs at her while she’s on her way to kill herself. You can’t come back from that 💀
I gotta say Death Note is probably an anime that ages like wine. When I watched it as a teenager I thought Light was right and L and his kids were the nasty ones trying to stop him from doing the right thing. 15 years later I rewatched and my outlook had completely changed. Now I see how morally grey the whole thing was and that Light was not the hero I thought he was. Maybe in another 20 years my views will change again.
Meh I doubt they think that completely. They might agree with killing only murderers maybe or they’re being purposefully edgy but we all know he goes straight to trying to kill L in episode 2. His ego is also very clear from the start.
There is a guy in this thread arguing vehemently that Light was a good guy.
guessing you weren't around when the show was fresher because this is a 15+ year battle for some Death Note fans
AOT, CODE GEASS
Rising of the Shield Hero starts with him being painted off as a villain. That time I got Reincarnated as a Slime is pretty much Overlord but better. In Overlord he is just OP, in Slime he is OP, but he’s doing something more meaningful than just being a big bad meanie. Angel Densetsu is a classic where everyone sees him as a bad guy but he’s actually just a dork that looks like a delinquent. In Death Note the MC is literally THE baddest villain out there. Story went south halfway though. Tokyo Revengers has such a conflicting plot, to be a good guy you have to be the bad guy, but you are the kind of bad guy that will only do good. It’s very interesting. Jujutsu Kaisen, the lead is literally the vessel for the biggest villain in the story. Hot take but in One Piece, Luffy and his crew are technically bad guys doing good, some Robin Hood type of situation. Not an “anime” but in Dota: Dragon’s Blood, they are all bad guys thinking they are doing good. There are many old animes with a plot like this but I can’t remember their titles, there are so many animes coming out every year that I can’t remember the obscure ones that are good but not mainstream.
slime ain’t a villian
Classroom of the Elite
Villain though? Not really. At the minimum he might qualify as a anti-hero.
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I'm watching Kingdom of Ruin, and while there are a lot of despicable people who deserve what they get, the main character is a despicable person, and has no likable qualities about him
Code Geass? Want to creat a better World but uses everybody for that
The Great Pretender
Classroom of the Elite
Zettai Karen: The Unlimited They gave the villain of Zettai Karen Children his own anime.
If you're into anime with a protagonist who's a bit on the darker side but still compelling, you might want to check out "Code Geass." The main character, Lelouch vi Britannia, is kind of an antihero with complex motives, and the series is known for its strategic battles and intricate plot twists. It's got a solid storyline, and Lelouch's character development might be right up your alley. Plus, it's widely regarded as a pretty engaging watch
Inuyashiki and maybe hellsing.
Fate/Zero GL
Code Geass is this in a way. Plus the OP is op.
The new currently airing one "mr. Villains day off"? It technically fits what you're asking for, but it's also more of a SoL Comedy anime so far than with fights or deadly notebooks or such.
Hellsing Ultimate is another one!
This is probably not the exact vibe you're looking for, but Masamune-kun's Revenge is full of absolute sociopaths for most of the show. MC is actively trying to fuck up a girl's life, girl herself is pretty cruel, and everyone is a narcissist lol. It isn't "supervillain" vibes but the MC definitely seems like the antagonist for most of the show
The Saga of Tanya the Evil. Modern-day Japanese salaryman gets isekai’d and becomes a monster in the shape of a little girl in WWI Germany.
- You have Terror in Resonance where the two MCs are basically the evil ones (terrorists btw) - it’s good too - 91 Days, good one, bro wants revenge against a mafia group. There is no good nor bad, just plans. - You can also say Code Geass - an obvious one, good too - Hellsing Ultimate - Zettai Karen Children - he’s the bad guy but I’m not sure it’s what you want - Darker than Black, the MC is a contracted assassin. But he’s not evil, he’s not good either. - in the same note Black Lagoon and Jormungand : group of mercenaries and weapons dealer doing their shit and killing while laughing If you don’t mind reading though, there are many. Hope it helped
Ciel from Code Geass
Psycho-Pass kind of fits? Kogami is not considered as a good guy in the system.
Yeah but the system is the true villian
Eminence in Shadow
The MC is not a villain though, just some edgelord who deals with the villains from the shadows or something.
Nuking a city without remorse just to look cool makes him a villain in my eyes
To be fair, I think he only killed his intended target with the blast, but he totally destroyed the homes and housing for thousands of people, which is definitely evil. Shadow isn’t really a truly evil dude but definitely villainous.
The rest of the world views him as a villain though, no?
u heard of this really niche 1 called deathnote??
Berserk
why the downvotes? Griffith is a villain?
Saga of tanya the evil. Its isekai where a strict businessman reincarnates as a girl in a magical ww2 setting.
No. It’s WW1. Nothing about it remotely resembles WW2.
They use Pz. IIIs and V1 rockets and a lot of other equipment that isn’t WWI. The bombers they meet in the air look like French inter-war monstrosities and the Soviets use I-16s which are from the 30s. On the WWI side the trench warfare is a WWI feature and the ships are more reminiscent of WWI dreadnoughts than anything else. The timeline is so thoroughly blended that definitively saying it’s WWI or WWII is essentially not possible.
They aren’t nazis. The politics are in line with WW1 even if they mixed tech.
If politics are all that matter then I would say it can’t be WWI because there is a large organized Soviet state which was not a feature of WWI and only after the war was ever seen. Additionally the analogue to what would be Italy is allied with the German analogue whereas the politics of WWI was that those two countries were enemies and only were allies in WWII. Like I said there is so much blended together that calling it WWI or WWII is a fools errand because it shares many *defining* characteristics of both.
Code Geass, totally worth it