I mean...they had a point! Join Ashley as we count down our picks for the anime antagonists who had fair reasons for their cruel actions
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00:00 Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the Top 20 Anime Villains
00:07 Who Had Justifiable Motives.
00:17 Number 20.
00:18 Tsukasa - Dr. Stone
00:21 Growing up, Tsukasa had to give everything just to keep his sister on life support.
00:26 So when a surge of global petrification turned most of humanity into stone figures, he didn't
00:32 see it as a curse.
00:33 No, he saw it as a chance for a clean slate.
00:37 Out with the old tide reliance on technology, and in with a pure, untainted way of life.
00:50 Now admittedly, going around shattering the remains of an entire generation is a bit excessive.
00:55 But you can't blame Tsukasa for harboring so much resentment towards modern society.
01:01 After all, it never gave him a reason to believe anything else.
01:15 Number 19.
01:17 Jiren - Dragon Ball Super
01:24 On paper, Universe 11's victory in the Tournament of Power means the utter obliteration of everything
01:30 Goku knows and loves.
01:31 But it's nothing personal.
01:34 Only one universe can make it out of this fight alive.
01:37 It's not Jiren's fault for trying to save his people, even if it does doom Goku and
01:41 the others.
01:47 If you want to start pointing fingers, the Omni-Kings are the real villains here.
01:52 They planned the tournament, set the stakes, and then proceeded to watch it all go down
01:57 like some kind of sick reality show.
01:59 Jiren's just playing to win, and as they say, don't hate the player, hate the game.
02:07 Number 18.
02:08 Takano Mio - Higurashi When They Cry and Higurashi When They Cry Kai
02:14 Tragic backstories can only do so much, but damn, Takano's is hard to resist.
02:19 Her adopted father, Hifumi, was the only one who treated her with any kind of respect.
02:25 Unfortunately, he didn't receive the same from his peers.
02:28 When Hifumi died as the laughingstock of the scientific community, Takano vowed to complete
02:33 his research on Hinamizawa Syndrome by any means necessary, including mass murder.
02:45 In Takano's eyes, society had never given her or Hifumi mercy.
02:55 Why should she give it to them?
02:57 To be fair, Takano does make some rather killer headway on her adopted father's research.
03:03 It just so happens that her invaluable progress comes at a very high price.
03:13 Number 17.
03:14 Thief King Bakura - Yu-Gi-Oh!
03:15 Duel Monsters For all the good Yu-Gi's done with the Millennium
03:27 Items, it will never outweigh what it cost to make them.
03:31 Turns out, the golden artifacts were created by massacring the entire village of Kool Elna.
03:37 Well, almost the entire village.
03:40 A young Bakura was spared from the bloodshed, but considering he had to see everyone he
03:45 loves die, that's not as kind as it sounds.
03:56 Since Bakura then gets possessed by the vengeful spirit of his village, you could say he really
04:01 knows how to hold a grudge, and honestly, we get it.
04:04 If we had to sit through that kind of torment, we'd want to destroy the Millennium Items
04:09 too.
04:10 Number 16.
04:11 Daki and Gyutaro - Demon Slayer Kimetsu no Yaiba
04:15 Before they were upper-ranked demons, these two siblings were just kids trying to scrape
04:20 by.
04:21 They worked, they struggled, and they cried.
04:24 And to show for it, Daki and Gyutaro were left to die on the street.
04:29 That is, until a demon came around and gave them a second chance.
04:33 What doesn't kill you makes you stronger, right?
04:42 With new demon blood coursing through their veins, Daki and Gyutaro doled out payback
04:48 to any mortal who dared cross their path.
04:51 Their methods aren't anything close to what you'd call charitable, but there's something
04:55 to be said about the fact that they didn't start this fight, they're just ending it.
05:06 Number 15.
05:07 Pain - Naruto Shippuden
05:10 For what it's worth, Nagato tried to handle things peacefully, and all it did was cost
05:15 him his parents, his best friends, and his morals.
05:18 In the heartbreak, Nagato realised that the only way to usher in peace was to show the
05:23 world what real suffering looks like, and he was more than willing to do the honours
05:28 himself.
05:30 This time, under a new name, Pain.
05:35 Look, it's impossible to feel bad for the Akatsuki leader after everything he did to
05:42 Jiraiya and Konoha.
05:44 And yet, deep down, Pain wants the same thing as everyone else.
05:48 The only difference is how far he's willing to go to get it.
05:59 Number 14.
06:00 Suguru Ghetto - Jujutsu Kaisen
06:04 Curses come from the negative emotions of mortals.
06:07 Suguru Ghetto argues that if you remove those humans from the equation, you naturally get
06:12 rid of all the curses too.
06:14 And what's more, you're left with a society that's been called down to sorcerers and
06:19 sorcerers alone.
06:20 It'd be a good plan if it didn't involve murdering every mortal on the planet.
06:34 But for Ghetto, that's a fair trade-off.
06:36 He's seen the vile things humans are capable of, and doesn't think they're worth saving
06:40 any more.
06:41 Plus, there's an argument to be made that, by eliminating curses now, you'd save lives
06:46 in the long run.
06:49 Ghetto may be radical, but he has some good points.
06:52 Number 13.
06:53 Lord Kagemitsu Daigo - Dororo
07:08 Let's get the big one out of the way.
07:09 Did Daigo sacrifice his firstborn to demons in the name of glory and fame?
07:15 Yes, absolutely.
07:17 But the results don't lie.
07:19 Daigo's people flourished under his new rule.
07:21 That's an objective fact.
07:23 The thing is, he needs the demons' influence to keep it that way.
07:27 If his son were to ever reclaim his body, the entire nation would fall into ruin.
07:33 Daigo isn't fighting his kin for pride.
07:35 He's doing it for the sake of his people.
07:41 Say what you will about him as a husband, a father, and an overall human being, but
07:46 you've got to admit Daigo's a pretty decent leader.
07:50 Number 12.
07:51 Zeke Yeager - Attack on Titan
07:59 The Yeager family knows better than anyone that the power of the Titans shouldn't be
08:04 in the hands of humans.
08:06 Since that curse falls upon the Eldians, most people are content to kill them off and call
08:11 it a day.
08:12 But Zeke has a better plan.
08:14 With Eren's help, he could sterilize the Eldians, allowing their race to die out without
08:20 any more bloodshed.
08:21 In this world, dying from old age is the best anyone could ask for.
08:34 While the story frames Zeke as an antagonist, in reality his plan would probably save the
08:39 most lives.
08:40 That doesn't absolve him of his many, many sins, but it does put them into perspective.
08:46 Number 11.
08:47 Gendo Ikari - Neon Genesis Evangelion
08:50 Nothing says "true love" like trying to restart reality, and that's just scratching
08:55 the surface of Gendo's actions.
08:58 In the name of his dead wife, he lied, cheated, stole, killed, and more.
09:03 Still, it's difficult to feel anything other than pity for the guy.
09:12 The loss of his beloved clearly consumed his soul.
09:16 So when the Human Instrumentality Project gave him a chance at a reunion, he wasn't
09:21 going to let anything stand in his way, not even humanity's existence as we know it.
09:34 In Gendo's defense, the shifty Seile organization truly believed human instrumentality was for
09:40 the best.
09:41 Even if Gendo disagreed, he wasn't acting out of malice, only grief.
09:46 Number 10.
09:47 Shogo Makishima - Psycho Pass
09:50 In this alternate reality, the Sybil System acts as the judge, jury, and executioner.
09:56 Capable of determining a person's crime coefficient before any actual wrongdoings
10:01 are carried out, this law enforcement enterprise shapes Japan's entire civilization.
10:11 Despite embodying the cruelest traits imaginable, Shogo lives free of Sybil's scrutiny - a
10:22 fact that convinces the villain to destroy the obviously flawed system.
10:29 Basically, Makishima's goal is to liberate the nation from Sybil's authoritative control
10:36 and force people to start scrutinizing their own behavior.
10:46 If it was not for all the senseless murder, Makishima would be almost inspirational.
10:55 Number 9.
10:56 Stain - My Hero Academia
10:59 Improving society, one dead pro-hero at a time.
11:10 Garnering a reputation as a violent vigilante, Stain detests the way society has commercialized
11:17 and cheapened the concept of a hero.
11:31 In the villain's mind, All Might is the only one who embodies the altruistic and pure
11:37 traits required to be accepted as a true hero, and believes that everyone else is only interested
11:43 in using their quirks to gain power, fame or riches.
11:48 Determined to eliminate fake heroes, Stain seems aware these actions are undoubtedly
11:53 wrong.
11:54 However, the villain believes such measures are necessary for the greater good.
12:10 Number 8.
12:11 Shishio Makoto - Rurouni Kenshin
12:14 Appointed as Kenshin's successor by the Meiji government, Shishio assassinated anyone
12:20 deemed to be a threat to their regime.
12:31 The swordsman was invaluable during the Boshin War, but the government realized Shishio knew
12:37 too much and needed to be eliminated.
12:49 Earned alive by the samurai's so-called allies, Shishio somehow managed to survive.
12:55 Understandably upset by this turn of events, Shishio dedicated the next decade to plotting
13:00 the government's downfall.
13:12 Now in all fairness, Shishio was always ruthless, sadistic and power-hungry.
13:17 Even if the betrayal never occurred, the villain might have still eventually tried to seize
13:22 the throne.
13:30 Number 7.
13:31 Kyubey - Madoka Magica
13:33 What is a magical girl anime without an adorable mascot?
13:37 As a deconstruction of the genre, Madoka Magica subverts expectations by villainizing the
13:43 little cutie who originally endows the girls with magical powers as a way to fight witches.
13:54 Belonging to an emotionless species known as the Incubators, Kyubey's true goal is
13:59 to transform magical girls into witches, as this produces a great deal of energy that
14:05 can be harnessed to postpone the universe's destruction.
14:19 Kyubey is beyond detestable, but the Incubators are genuinely striving to protect everything.
14:29 Number 6.
14:31 Shinobu Sensui - Yu Yu Hakusho
14:34 A former spirit detective, chapter Black Saga's antagonist rigidly believed in one universal
14:40 truth; humans are innately good, while demons are born evil.
14:53 Driven by this narrow worldview, Shinobu Sensui thoughtlessly slaughtered countless demons,
14:59 but this all changed when the Black Angel stumbled upon a ritual where humans pointlessly
15:04 tortured demons for entertainment.
15:13 Unable to accept this revelation, and overwhelmed by guilt due to possibly killing numerous
15:18 innocent demons, Sensui's mind shattered into various personalities as a means to cope.
15:28 On the surface, Sensui wished to trigger the apocalypse, but the villain's true goal
15:39 was to seek atonement by dying at the hands of a demon.
15:46 Number 5.
15:47 Lord Genome - Gurren Lagann
15:50 Stuck between a rock and a never-ending wave of powerful aliens seeking to eradicate humanity,
15:56 the Spiral King decided to prioritise salvation above anything else.
16:11 As long as the last few remaining colonies remained underground, the anti-spirals agreed
16:16 to not completely wipe out humanity.
16:19 Consequently, Lord Genome established a tyrannical army to slaughter anyone who pierced through
16:24 the surface.
16:35 During Gurren Lagann's initial episodes, the Spiral King comes across as a power-hungry
16:40 dictator desperate to subjugate any and all people.
16:44 By the end of the series, Lord Genome is regarded as a valuable ally in the war against the
16:50 anti-spirals.
16:56 I would be honoured.
16:57 Number 4.
16:58 Squealer - From the New World
17:01 This monster rat is the living embodiment of "don't judge a book by its cover".
17:09 Taking place in a universe populated by a tiny portion of super-powered humans who outlasted
17:15 everyone else, From the Other World boils down to a war between humans and suppressed
17:19 creatures known as "Kweerats".
17:22 As the leader of the revolt, Squealer talks about craving equality for all races, but
17:27 believes such a feat cannot be accomplished if humans were allowed to live.
17:43 The anime's final episode reveals Kweerats are actually ordinary humans whose DNA was
17:49 forcibly mutated, and Squealer wished to destroy a cruel regime built on lies.
18:04 Number 3.
18:05 Light Yagami - Death Note
18:07 Absolute power corrupts absolutely, and that is before a magical death-granting book is
18:13 added to the equation.
18:23 The son of a detective and loved by all, Light Yagami sought to use the Death Note's power
18:28 to forge a world free of crime or injustice.
18:40 Initially, the protagonist only writes down the names of people deemed to be evil.
18:45 Putting aside whether such a decision should be left to a teenage boy, Light's utilitarian
18:50 motives steadily subside in favor of ruthless self-preservation.
18:59 While Light manages to significantly reduce the world's crime rates, this outcome was
19:04 achieved by installing widespread fear rather than promoting a sense of justice.
19:12 Number 2.
19:13 The Principality of Zeon - Mobile Suit Gundam Series
19:17 Despite regular comparisons to the Nazis, this nation's initial goal was essentially
19:22 the complete opposite of an oppressive regime.
19:34 Succumbing to a heart attack seconds before announcing the autonomous Republic of Muzo's
19:38 liberation from the Earth Federation, Zeon's Zomdaikun inadvertently leaves the nation
19:43 in the hands of Dagwin Zabi, who eventually announces the Principality of Zeon's independence
19:49 and declares war on the Federation.
20:02 Dagwin's methods may have been questionable, but the dictator's son was responsible for
20:07 truly pushing Zeon into villainous territory.
20:18 Seeking to destroy all human life on Earth to make room for the nation's so-called
20:23 "superior race", Guren was even compared to Hitler by Dagwin.
20:37 Number 1.
20:55 Scar - Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood
20:58 Craving justice for a cruel civil war that led to the slaughter of an entire nation,
21:03 the serial killer's hatred is perfectly understandable.
21:15 Identified by an X-shaped facial wound, Scar sought retribution against state alchemists,
21:21 who were responsible for the vast majority of deaths during the Ishvalan Civil War.
21:27 While the villain's efforts may have been driven by grief, Scar exterminated state alchemists
21:32 without discrimination, and the serial killer's actions hardly benefited the remaining Ishvalan
21:38 refugees.
21:46 But if anything, this act of revenge has some grounds of justification for the Ishvalan
21:51 survivor.
21:54 Who's your favourite morally grey anime character?
21:59 Let us know in those comments below.
22:10 Thanks for watching!
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