Some anime villains aren’t wrong—they’re just extreme. Their motivations, stripped of methods, sometimes make uncomfortable sense. Here are 10 villains whose points actually landed.
10. Gentle Criminal (My Hero Academia)
His point: society discards those who fail to become heroes, regardless of their potential. He became a villain because the system offered no redemption for a single mistake. He’s not wrong about hero society’s cruelty.
9. Stain (My Hero Academia)
His point: most heroes are in it for fame and money, not to save people. His murders were unjustified, but his criticism of hero commodification is textually validated by the series.
8. Makishima (Psycho-Pass)
His point: a society that outsources moral judgment to an AI loses its humanity. Sibyl System’s control is explicitly dystopian. Makishima’s methods were monstrous, but his diagnosis was accurate.
7. Meruem (Hunter x Hunter)
His point: humans are cruel, wasteful, and self-destructive. The Chimera Ant King’s initial contempt for humanity is hard to argue with given what the series shows about human behavior.
6. Pain (Naruto)
His point: the ninja system perpetuates endless war where civilians suffer. His solution (mutual assured destruction) was wrong, but his analysis of the shinobi world’s cruelty is validated by the entire series.
5. Zeke Yeager (Attack on Titan)
His point: if Eldians stop existing, Titan powers end and the world is safe. His euthanasia plan is horrifying but logically addresses the problem. His brother’s alternative was worse.
4. Askeladd (Vinland Saga)
His point: Vikings are destroyers, and someone needs to protect Wales from them. His manipulation and murders served a comprehensible goal: save his homeland from his own people.
3. Doflamingo (One Piece)
His point: the World Government are the real pirates, having committed genocide and hidden history. His methods were evil, but his exposure of government hypocrisy hit hard.
2. Johan Liebert (Monster)
His point: humans are capable of infinite cruelty, and he’s just honest about it. He didn’t create the systems that made him—they were already monstrous. He’s a mirror, not an aberration.
1. Thanos (honorary anime via manga adaptations)
Just kidding. The real #1 is Griffith from Berserk—except he’s not right at all; he’s just written so well that some fans think he had a point. He didn’t. He sacrificed friends for power. That’s never okay.