An anime becomes more interesting to watch when the villains have much more to offer than mere strength. Their intellect as they try to take the situation into their own hands adds depth to the show and adds a level of suspense for the viewers, who are left in awe when their plans are revealed.
The villains in this list have some of the most intellectual quotes and moments in their respective shows. They can turn the situation against the main protagonist effortlessly, further creating challenges that they need to overcome. Their deceptiveness reaches new levels as they shock both the characters and the fans watching them.
8
Eren Yaeger
Attack On Titan
This section contains spoilers for Attack on Titan. Do not read it if you haven’t watched the anime’s fourth season.
Eren Yaeger turned out more devious than anyone imagined in the Attack on Titan anime. Apparently, he has the ability to see memories of the future and the past. To begin his plan, he uses those powers to brainwash his father and lead him to kill the royal family to claim the Founding Titan and get young Eren injected by the Titan Serum.
Eren wanted to eradicate Marleyans because of their continuous injustice towards Paradis, and his plan led him to accomplish Rumbling, a mass genocide event that would eradicate all life for the sake of Eldians. He pretended to do the greater good, but his notions were destructive in nature.
7
Gakushu Asano
Assassination Classroom
After striving to become an ideal teacher for his students, Gakushu abandoned his ways following their death. He started running his school with the idea of the ‘survival of the fittest,’ which produced excellent students but at the cost of weaker students being shunned.
Asano believed that marginalizing unqualified students and making a mockery out of them gives the geniuses motivation to reach greater heights. They feel a sense of superiority, which motivates them to do better, especially when they do not want to end up at a bad place. Asano also displayed his intellect by challenging Koro Sensei in a battle of wits.
6
Fryodor Dostoyevsky
Bungou Stray Dogs
Fryodor Dostoyevsky is the smartest villain in Bungou Stray Dogs, a series teeming with some of the most intelligent characters in anime. Fryodor is known for his ability to come up with plans. He barely leaves any holes in his strategies, as he has alternate schemes ready in case anything goes awry.
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Fryordor wants to eradicate all ability users from this world, and for this purpose, he resorts to the path of evil, which he deems necessary. He doesn’t seem to value his allies and treats them as tools required for the success of his meticulous plans.
5
Shogo Makishima
Psycho Pass
Shogo Makishima hated the Sibyl System that governed the society in Psycho-Pass and the fact that it restrains humans from following their free wills. However, it seems like he is obsessed with observing the evil tendencies of humans as well, which ends up causing more harm than good.
Shogo Makishima only appears during the first season of the anime.
He wanted people to be true to themselves, even committing murder if that’s who they are as a person. Makishima died completely satisfied by Kogami killing him, displaying the embodiment of the free will he envisioned. Shogo Makishima’s philosophical quotes related to the nature of people are interesting throughout the anime.
4
Aizen
Bleach
Aizen is probably the smartest soul repeat captain that bestowed upon Soul Society, except he ends up using his wits to commit atrocities. His evil self catches us off-guard as he presents himself as a gentle captain who is often nice to Momo, the lieutenant who trusted him so much.
His intelligence made him question the ways of Soul Society, and he ended up yearning to kill the Soul King to become the most powerful soul reaper, as he thought himself to be the only one fit for that role. With his well-thought-out plans, Aizen seems to be one step ahead of those who try to thwart him.
3
Griffith
Berserk
Griffith is often revered as the most charismatic antagonist in anime, not only due to his looks but also because of his intellect and capability to hatch plans. He is also shown to pull the psychological strings of people, like the time he harmed Casca to show Guts his powerlessness.
Griffith is also shown to be strategic as he wins many battles as the Supreme Commander of the Midland regular army. He is also shown to keep his cool and come up with counter plans when the situation doesn’t go the way he expected.
2
Light Yagami
Death Note
Light Yagami is an inspiring student. Unfortunately, his intelligence led him to develop a God Complex, as he thought himself to be the only one who could fix this world full of strife and injustice. He thought he had good intentions while killing those criminals, except things escalated, and he ended up taking the lives of many people who tried to stand against him.
Light is shown to be a manipulator, as he leads a woman to reveal her name by building trust with her. He successfully throws L off his trail and kills the detective after multiple back-and-forth battles of wits, which displays Light’s brainpower.
1
Johan Liebert
Monster
Johan Liebert is shown to have some severe psychological issues as a child, and these shape him into the charismatic villain we know. He is shown to voice strong nihilistic views and doesn’t seem to see much value in life. He is shown to get on everyone’s good side quickly due to his influential personality, but he ends up using them to commit evil.
He tends to be sadistic and tries to hurt his victims indirectly until they end up taking their lives. Johan doesn’t seem to have any particular reasons for his actions, and he doesn’t see anything wrong with them, which makes his personality as a villain very chilling.
