8 anime villains we all cheered for over the heroes

In a good anime, the bad guys are usually the real driving force behind a good story. Though we are conditioned to side with the hero, a well-written villain can be so authentic in his or her actions that we wonder who is right and who is wrong. There are villains who just enjoy seeing the world burn, but there are also broken heroes — people who were good but pushed too far by an inhumane world.

When it all comes down to it, it is all about perspective. A lot of the most recognizable anime villains have such profound motives for their behavior that the viewer can not help but empathize with them. These characters show that the boundaries between a hero and a villain are not as thick as we imagine, whether they are out to achieve world peace or attempt to salvage a malfunctioning system.

Light Yagami

Light Yagami is a very interesting character as he actually thought that he was the hero of his own life. He began with the simple and noble purpose of clearing the world of violent criminals and establishing a peaceful nation that would allow the innocent to live in safety. But his morality started to lose control as he acquired more power. He began to murder anyone who stood in his path, even though they may not have committed a serious offense.

Light was cheered on by the fans since even his first thought of a crime-free world is what almost everyone wishes to see. Fans cheered on him to outwit the police, not because they liked his darkness, but because everyone was initially intrigued to know whether his new world would be able to become a reality. His story clearly showed how even the most noble intentions can become a nightmare of a god complex when power is not controlled.

White Rabbit

White Rabbit is a prime example of "villains are not born but made." He was initially a man who saw innocence even in demons, who attempted to shield them against the world that could just perceive them as monsters. When Lady and her allies came and killed the things he cared about, they killed not only demons—they killed his soul. It was not his preference to be a villain; he was the unfortunate consequence of a kind of justice that was so blind as not to see the distinction between a monster and a friend.

Fans end up supporting Rabbit since he reveals the hypocritical nature of the hero's world. He is the living evidence that the shoot first mentality will create an enemy that is much more lethal than any natural demon. He was never evil, even after revealing his whole plan. Fans wanted him to win because he served as a reflection of the bloody nature of the hunters themselves.

Shogo Makishima

In a world controlled by A.I. and computers, Shogo Makishima was the last rebel against the cold and robotic society. Everyone on his planet is monitored by a computer system that determines their future and evaluates their state of mind. Makishima considers that this deprives people of the very thing that makes people human: free will. He does not engage in crime to benefit himself, but to make people open their eyes and begin thinking independently once again.

It is difficult not to agree with him, as fans witness how repressive the so-called perfect system is. He makes us remember that a world that does not struggle or make a choice is not a world people would wish to live in, and thus it makes him a villain, the main message of which, however, is too heroic, too human.

Stain

Stain, the Hero Killer, has a very simple and direct complaint with Hero Society: he despises false heroes. He feels that self-sacrifice and self-help are the real heroism, not being famous, rich, or ranked. He believes he is doing good by searching for heroes who fight on the wrong side of the cause to inspire a new breed of warriors who will be pure of heart and fight for what's right, not for fame.

His reasoning is so good that the main characters of the show find it hard to disagree with him. Stain has a lot of fans, as his criticism of the current celebrity culture seems very authentic. He is a violent yet sincere aspiration to be upright, and thus is one of the few villains who, in fact, pushes the so-called good guys to be more like he is, and the only villain that actually inspired All Might to believe in himself once again.

Johan Liebert

Johan Liebert is commonly referred to as one of the scariest villains in the anime world and also the most compelling. Even though he has no superpowers and giant mechs, he has words and the power of manipulation over the psyche to bring out the worst in people. Johan perceives the world as a dark, senseless place, and he wants to show that there is a monster that is buried inside everyone.

Fans are usually attracted to his peaceful and polite attitude despite his hideous activities. It is a tragic mystery in his eyes that he wants you to know why he was so broken. His brilliance is hypnotic, and his personality is a chilling reflection of the darker aspects of the human mind that we tend to keep in the shadows.

Meruem

Meruem started out as an all-consuming monster, viewing men as nothing more than livestock. He was born to rule and destroy. However, his outlook has changed after meeting a simple girl named Komugi. He started to realize the importance of life, beauty, and personal spirit through his games of strategy, and eventually challenged his own purpose of violence.

At the end of his story arc, he had more fans shedding tears for him than any other hero. We cheered on his inner development and his transformation from a monster to a philosopher king. His tale is a great reminder that not every one of us starts evil, and that the most mighty creature in the universe can be redeemed through a mere human relationship.

Madara Uchiha

Madara Uchiha is a villain who has spent decades in war and lost everything he loved. And, although he was manipulated too, in his mind, he arrived at a conclusion: to put all humans in a lasting, blissful dream is the only means of ending human suffering. He did not wish to be the monarch of a kingdom of slaves, he wanted to offer each one of them their own paradise where there's no war or suffering.

As soon as you consider the bloodshed that is perpetual in his world, it actually begins to sound like a mercy in the ninja world. Fans cheered for Madara because they could relate to a man who witnessed more than enough pain and really thought that he was saving the world.

Sosuke Aizen

Sosuke Aizen is the ultimate definition of a "cool villain". Over the years, he had been playing the role of an extraordinary leader and at the same time plotting to break the boundaries of both gods and men. He believed that the existing heavens were a domain of "nothingness" and desired to become a king himself in order to introduce a new order to life. The way he planned everything, he became an instant fan favorite, with all anime fans making memes about everything a part of Aizen's plan.

It is something incredibly gratifying to see a character carry out a plan that has been centuries old. He did not merely desire to have power; he wanted to alter the most basic structure of reality. His ambition alone and his charisma had raised him to an interesting villain whom the fans really wanted to win, just because he deserved it.