Top 20 Villains Meme

WARNING! #'s 16, 15, 10, 7, 6, and 5 contain spoilers for Death Note and Fullmetal Alchemist!

This description is EXTREMELY LONG. Read at your own risk.

Top left > bottom right = #20 > #1

Oh snap, it's been a while since I've done a meme! I know this is just... top 20 villains in general, but I felt like doing anime villains. No particular reason why, really.

A villain, storywise, is generally a character who antagonizes the main character (thus the term antagonist), giving the story conflict and additional depth. The most well-written villains are more than just a plot device to keep the story moving; they are their own characters, with a personality, a past, and struggles of their own. I judged the villains on this list partially by how much I personally like their character, and partially by how well they worked for the story as a villain.

20. Kabuto - Naruto
I'm not really a fan of Kabuto... in fact, to be honest, he terrifies me. But I think he's a good villain (If that makes any sense); well written, and carries out his role in the story well.

19. Itachi Uchiha - Naruto
At where I am in Naruto (Shippuden episode 103; Yuukimaru and Guren Arc), I don't really know much about Itachi other than he murdered his whole clan and ruined his little brother's life forever . And that he's played by Crispin Freeman, which is automatic brownie points. But everyone tells me he's "TEH BEST BIG BROTHER EVAR~", so... I'm trusting that I'll like him better once I know a little more of his backstory. Anyway, I rather like him.

18. Sasori - Naruto
All right, I admit it. A significant part of the reason Sasori made the list is for his voice actor. Johnny Yong Bosch FTW And he's just cute. Lol, Sasori is awesome!

17. Fire Lord Ozai - Avatar: the Last Airbender
Well, I'm not really a fan of Ozai. In fact, I rather despise him for all he's done to his wonderful son. BUT! He is definitely a very well written antagonist (Now that I think of it... he has a God complex and wants to reform the world in his image. Sounds like my #3 pick), and I won't deny that I've seen a couple fanarts of him that made me . And considering that he's played by Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker), does anyone else find it ironic that he first had a horrible father, and went on to be a horrible father?

16. Kiyomi Takada - Death Note
(Warning: if you haven't yet seen DN, this and #s 15, 10, and 3 may contains spoilers.)
Does Kiyomi count as a villain? I mean, she was Light's, ehm... tool for a little while, and she was Kira's number one supporter even before that. I dunno. Either way, I liked her.

15. Mikami Teru - Death Note
I really liked Mikami, when he was first introduced. He seemed like a quiet, reserved guy with a passion for justice. But he was quickly revealed to be PSYCHO. I'm not sure which is more prominent; his psychotic method of writing in the Death Note ("Delete. Delete! DELETE!!"), or his frequent exclamations of "God! I serve you!", but something about him just... creeps me out. And his gruesome suicide didn't help things any either.

14. Zhao - Avatar: the Last Airbender
Even though he was only the main antagonist for the first season, I'd say he was a very well written villain for the duration of that time. He helped a lot to set up Zuko's story. I'd say his 20 episodes of screentime were spent perfectly.

13. Azula - Avatar: the Last Airbender
Oh, come on. She had to make the list! She's not only a wonderfully written villain, she's a wonderfully well-developed character! In my opinion, the second most complex character in the whole show (brownie points to anyone who can guess who I think is the most complex character). Her mental breakdown toward the end... wow. Just wow. It totally made sense. Everything subtly led up to that point. It was brilliant writing in an already brilliant series.

12. Deidara - Naruto
Deidara is awesome! At first he... kind of weirded me out (He has tongues on his hands for Pete's sake!), but he grows on you. He's just... terribly amusing to me. I don't know. This is one of those villains on the list that made for how much I like him rather than how well written he is.

11. Ren Tao - Shaman King
Despite the little bit I know about Shaman King, and the very little bit I've seen of Ren in the time since I met him, he does seem like a very interesting character to me. I can't really say how he develops the story as a villain, since I haven't seen him much, but he had to make the list.

10. Mello - Death Note
And who says chocolate eating isn't sexy? Mello is just hot. 'Nuf said. I think he would have made a perfect L replacement.

9. Darcia - Wolf's Rain.
HE'S PSYCHO, I TELL YOU! HE'S PSYCHO!! But a very well written villain in an incredible anime. The whole anime was just... intensely symbolic, and Darcia was no exception. Steve Blum's (AKA Zabuza/Orochimaru to the Naruto fans) signature ominous voice just made him perfect.

8. Hao Asakura - Shaman King
...I confess, I haven't read Shaman King in a while. And I haven't actually met Hao yet, but from what I've heard/seen of him, he's amazing, and he had to make the list. In case anyone cares (icon buddeh ), I promise I'll read some SK tonight!

7. Envy - Fullmetal Alchemist
Oh, how I love FMA At least one homunculus had to make the list. At LEAST one. And of course Envy would be among them! S/He's just awesome! Not nearly as awesome as the other homunculus that made the list, but I still like him/her.

6. Lust - Fullmetal Alchemist
I LOVE LUST!! She's teh best homunculus evar! I'd dare call her one of the most complex characters in the anime. She struggles a lot with knowing that she's artificial; not really human, and wonders if the emotions and memories she has are really real, or simply remnants of who she was in life. She even ended up turning good in the end! Why did she have to get killed by Wrath?? I hate him so much.

5. Scar - Fullmetal Alchemist
He had to make the list. He's awesome. When I first started watching the series, one of my friends told me, "You'll like Scar. Once you get to know him, he's really fighting for the right reasons." While it took a bit, Scar did grow on me. And while his methods were a twisted by revenge, I'd say he definitely had good motives. He was a good guy. And just when I was getting to love him, he went and died on me.

4. Orochimaru - Naruto
Anyone who's seen Naruto (Zabuza), Wolf's Rain (Darcia), or Cowboy Bebop (Vicious) knows that Steve Blum is just fantastic at the deep, gravelly voice that makes for a perfect, ominous villain. Who knew he could also pull off one heck of a sexy, alluring voice? I don't care what anyone says, Orochimaru is awesome. Granted, there's darn good reasons why the fans make so many jokes about him being Michael Jackson (I'll leave that to your imaginations to figure out it out), but... I just... I just can't help it! He's amazing!

3. Light Yagami - Death Note

Yeah, I support Kira. What of it? He's just awesome! It's weird. Light is the kind of characters I think I would normally despise. And while I did get ticked off with him a few times, I never could stay angry. I love him. I did right from the beginning. I like L and all, but I'm pro-Kira all the way. Come at me, bro.

2. Gaara - Naruto
I love him so much But that's in Shippuden; that's a whole different story. In order for him to count as a villain, we have to go back to when he was first introduced; back when he was a murderous psychopath who scared the living crap out of me. My gosh, he was one heck of a villain. Very, very few fictional characters have ever legitimately scared me. Gaara is maybe the third ever.

1. Zuko - Avatar: the Last Airbender
Surely you knew he would make #1! I dare you to find me a more deep, complex, and well developed character. Go ahead. Make my day. Even if you can find one, he/she most likely will not affect me quite the way Zuko did. I know it must sound silly, but I honestly don't care. Zuko is the most well written character, whether good or bad or in between, I have ever seen.