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3%% This page has been alphabetized. Please add new examples in the correct order. Thanks!
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9%% Before un-commenting, explain how the villain causes the problem(s) the heroes must solve during this StoryArc.
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14!!Anime/Manga with their own pages
15[[index]]
16* ''ArcVillain/DragonBall''
17* ''ArcVillain/OnePiece''
18[[/index]]
19
20----
21* ''Manga/{{Berserk}}'''s BigBadDuumvirate are [[DemonLordsAndArchdevils The God Hand]], in particular [[WhiteHairBlackHeart Griffith/Femto]], but each arc also has its own main villain:
22** Black Swordsman arc: [[FatBastard The Slug Count]], with the Godhand as the GreaterScopeVillain.
23** Golden Age arc: Initially the [[TheEmpire Chuder Empire]], represented especially by [[DepravedBisexual Lord Gennon]]; then [[TheCaligula the King of Midland]] (with [[PsychoForHire Wyald]] as DragonInChief); and finally the Godhand.
24** The Conviction Arc is subdivided into three mini-arcs called "chapters", with different villains taking prominence in each one:
25*** Chapter of Lost Children: [[WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds Rosine]].
26*** Chapter of the Binding Chain: [[InspectorJavert Farnese]] and her [[ChurchMilitant Holy Iron Chain Knights]].
27*** Chapter of the Birth Ceremony: A BigBadDuumvirate of [[KnightTemplar Bishop Mozgus]] and [[TragicMonster the Egg Apostle]], with the Godhand as GreaterScopeVillain once again.
28** Millennium Falcon arc: [[SorcerousOverlord Ganishka]] of the Kushan Empire. Griffith comes back as a VillainWithGoodPublicity and fights against Ganishka; to the extent that Guts gets involved in their EvilVersusEvil feud he is temporarily forced to cooperate with Griffith's minions, simply because Ganishka is the one who’s currently threatening his party more.
29** Fantasia arc: Griffith for the most part, but during the voyage to Elfhelm there’s a lengthy interlude where [[SeaMonster the Sea God]] is the protagonists' main problem.
30* ''Manga/BlackClover'':
31** Revchi is the StarterVillain, trying to steal Yuno's four-leaf grimoire, which provokes Asta to manifest his five-leaf grimoire. Later Heath Grice, who's trying to steal a magic stone from a village for the Eye of the Midnight Sun.
32** The Dungeon Exploration Arc has Mars, a mage from the Diamond Kingdom who comes into conflict with the Black Bulls and Golden Dawn.
33** Rades Spirito in the Royal Capital Assault Arc, with his corpses attacking throughout the Capital.
34** The Eye of the Midnight Sun Encounter Arc has Baro and Sally trying time kidnap children from Nean, with Licht then appearing.
35** Vetto in the Underwater Temple Arc, leading members of the Eye of the Midnight Sun to obtain a magic stone.
36** The Forest of Witches Arc has Fana attack the forest for a magic stone, and Mars and Ladros lead an army to conquer the forest. After these threats are dealt with, the Witch Queen establishes herself as this for the rest of the arc.
37** The closest thing the Royal Knights Arc has to one is Langris, whose near-murder of Finral puts him into conflict with the Black Bulls.
38* ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'': Kageroza Inaba is a villain created for the anime's last [[FillerVillain filler arc]]. In canon, Ichigo sacrifices his powers to defeat Aizen after training in the Dangai as a result of Aizen destroying the Janitor that prevents Soul Reapers lingering too long there. Kageroza takes advantage of the loss of the Janitor and Ichigo's powers to enact his plan to destroy the Gotei 13 by manipulating the power fluctations within the now-unstable Dangai. The key to defeating Kageroza flees to the human world and falls under Ichigo's protection, bringing him into direct conflict with Kageroza. Ichigo helps her to gain the power she needs to defy Kageroza; she is later able to use this strength to help Ichigo and the Gotei 13 defeat Kageroza for good.
39%%* ''Manga/BlueExorcist:''
40%%** The True Cross Academy Arc: While it was an episodic arc, Amaimon was the closest it had to one.
41%%** The Resurrection of the Impure King Arc: The titular Impure King was mostly Heavy while Saburota Touto was the most active villain.
42%%** The Terror of the Kraken Arc: The Kraken.
43%%** The True Cross Festival Arc: [[spoiler: Renzo Shima]].
44%%** The Illuminati Arc: Dr. Michael Gedouin, with Lucifer as the GreaterScopeVillain.
45%%** The Amori Arc: Hachirotaro Okami.
46* ''Literature/ACertainMagicalIndex'' follows this formula, with each StoryArc having a different antagonist at the center.
47** The "Index" arc has Pen Mode Index
48** The "Deep Blood" arc has rogue alchemist Aureolus Izzard.
49** The "Sisters" arc has Accelerator, the one at the center of the "Level 6 Shift" experiment.
50** The "Angel Fall" arc has Misha, a fallen angel looking to get back to Heaven.
51** The "Three Stories" arc has Etzali for the first story, Ouma Yamisaka for the second story and Ao Amai for the third story.
52** The "Hyouka Kazakiri" arc has Sherry Cromwell, the one after Hyouka Kazakiri.
53** The "Orsola Aquinas Rescue" arc has Agnese Sanctis, the leader of the warrior nuns sent by the Roman Orthodox Church to retrieve Orsola.
54** The "Tree Diagram" arc has Awaki Musujime, whose out to retrieve the core remnant of the Tree Diagram on behalf of her employers.
55** The "Daihasei Festival" arc has Lidvia Lorenzetti, an official of the Roman Orthodox Church seeking the Croce de Pietro in order to use it to force all of Academy City to convert to Roman Catholicism.
56** The "Queen of the Adriatic Sea" arc has Bishop Biagio Busoni of the Roman Orthodox Church, the one in charge of the La Regina del Mare Adriatico battleship.
57** The "Academy City Invasion" arc has a BigBadEnsemble of Vento of the Front and Amata Kihara, the former being a member of the Roman Orthodox Church's [[EliteFour God's Right Seat]].
58** The "Document of Constantine" arc has Terra of the Left, the second member of God's Right Seat to take center stage.
59** The "Battle Royale" arc mainly has Teitoku Kakine, leader of SCHOOL, and Shizuri Mugino, leader of ITEM, though members of MEMBER and BLOCK also appear as enemies.
60** The "Acqua of the Back" arc has the [[AntagonistTitle eponymous]] Acqua of the Back of God's Right Seat.
61** The "British Royal Family" arc has Second Princess Carissa, the one leading a coup to take over England.
62** The "DRAGON" arc has the Spark Signal terrorist group, Board member Shiokishi's faction, and Shizuri Mugino.
63** The "WorldWarIII" arc has [[spoiler:Fiamma of the Right]], who was also active in the previous few arcs as well. He's not the only player involved in the war, but every other faction was really being manipulated by him.
64* ''Manga/ChainsawMan'':
65** Part 1: Public Safety saga: [[spoiler:[[ControlFreak Makima, the Control Devil]]]], serves as the overall BigBad of Part 1 of the series, [[spoiler:her manipulations of [[TheHero Denji]] to get him to break his contract with [[BigGood Pochita]] so as to use the Chainsaw Devil's RetGone powers for her own goals being what drives the events of the Part. Almost every villain of the Part's individual arcs are either directly working for Makima or are unknowingly being manipulated by her in order to serve her goals]].
66*** Introduction arc: The [[TheDon Debt Collector]], an elderly Yakuza leader who used Denji as a devil hunter in order to offload his debt due to his dead father unable to pay it, and is a scummy old man who made a [[DealWithTheDevil contract]] with the Zombie Devil and betrayed Denji just to get what he wants. His contract with the Zombie Devil and betrayal lead to Denji fusing with Pochita and becoming Chainsaw Man.
67*** Bat Devil arc: The titular [[BatOutOfHell Bat Devil]] and his girlfriend, the Leech Devil, serve as the co-antagonists for this arc. While the Bat Devil forcing Power to bring him humans to eat is what drives the plot of the arc, the Leech Devil's [[DiabolusExMachina sudden appearance]] after the Bat Devil's defeat results in her ending up as the final opponent of the arc.
68*** Eternity Devil arc: The titular [[EmotionEater Eternity Devil]], the devil embodying humanity's fear of eternity, who puts the characters in a TimeLoopTrap as part of its plan to kill and eat Denji.
69*** Katana Man arc: [[DarkActionGirl Akane Sawatari]] and the titular [[TheBrute Katana Man]] serve as [[EvilDuo co-antagonists]] for this arc, working under orders of the Gun Devil to kill Denji [[spoiler:(though this is later revealed to be a lie on Akane's part, with it heavily implied they were actually working for Makima in a plan to gain more power in Public Safety)]]. The two serve a BrainsAndBrawn dynamic, with Katana Man serving as the greater physical threat for Denji to take on, while Akane serves as more of an intellectual threat who's tied more to Aki's character arc.
70*** International Assassins arc: [[spoiler:[[TheChessmaster Doll Woman]], Tolka's master and the true identity of "Santa Claus", who ultimately comes out on top as the most dangerous of the various assassin parties, as well as the last one the characters face]].
71** Part 2: Academy saga:
72*** Justice Devil arc: [[spoiler:[[KnightTemplar Yuko]], Asa's FirstFriend, who makes a contract with the titular Justice Devil (later revealed to actually be the Fire Devil) to lead a massacre at Asa's school in order to [[BullyHunter eliminate the bullies at the school]] under the belief that what she's doing is right]].
73*** Dating Denji arc: The Eternity Devil returns to serve as the villain of the arc, showing up to interrupt Denji and Asa's date at an aquarium [[spoiler:on orders by [[HorsemenOfTheApocalypse Fami]] as part of her plan to convince Asa to turn Denji into a weapon]].
74*** Falling Devil arc: The titular [[EvilChef Falling Devil]], the devil embodying humanity's PrimalFear of heights and falling, who arrives on Earth serve humans as meals to her fellow devils, Asa included. [[spoiler:Like the Eternity Devil, it's revealed that she's actually working under order of Fami, as part of Fami's plan to prevent the arrival of the [[GreaterScopeVillain Great King of Terror]]]].
75*** Chainsaw Man Church arc: [[LoonyFan Barem Bridge]] serves as the antagonist for this arc, as while he's only TheDragon of the titular church, his goal to destroy any normalcy in Denji's life and force him to embrace being Chainsaw Man is what drives the conflict of the arc.
76* ''Manga/Cyborg009'' has plenty.
77** The "Birth" arc features Skull, leader of Black Ghost.
78** The "Assassins" arc has Skull again, though he only appears at the very beginning, with Cyborgs 0010, 0011, 0012 and 0013 one-by-one going up against the protagonists.
79** The "Man or Machine" arc has the [[ThoseWackyNazis Neo Nazis]], the first villains [[InterimVillain not to be connected to Black Ghost]] (although the anime changes them to a cell of Black Ghost based in the arctic).
80** The "Vietnam" arc has [[MookLieutenant Cyborgman Number 1]].
81** The "Mythos" arc has a BigBadDuumvirate between Dr. Gaia and Dr. Uranus. Apollo, the leader of the Mythos Cyborgs, serves as their DragonInChief as the main foe 009 must contend with.
82** The "Underground Kingdom of Yomi" arc has Skull once again at the helm, although his cohort [[TheHeavy Van Vogt]] is equally as proactive as he is, if not more so. It's later revealed [[spoiler:both of them really answer to a [[TheManBehindTheMan mysterious being]] lurking inside of their ultimate superweapon, the "Demon Statue".]]
83** The "Monster Island" arc has the five Monster Island scientists, who are really [[TheRemnant remnants]] of Black Ghost, leading our protagonists to discover that traces of the organization still remain.
84** The "Middle East War" arc has Moses, who turns out to be the leader of another remnant of Black Ghost.
85** The "Immigration" arc has the Commander.
86** The "Lorelai's Song" arc has a mysterious BlackKnight terrorizing a German village, who turns out to really be [[spoiler:a [[SamusIsAGirl witch]] desiring revenge on them for their past persecution of her and her mother.]]
87** The "Bottom of the Sea" arc has the [[ApparentlyHumanMerfolk Underseas People]], although at the end of the arc [[spoiler:Bii, a Black Ghost {{cyborg}} who spends most of the arc in an EnemyMine with 009, betrays him and becomes the FinalBoss.]]
88** The "Angels" arc has the titular "Angels", who are really a race of WingedHumanoid aliens who claim to have created humankind.
89** The "Battle with the Gods" arc[[note]]which serves as a continuation/retelling of sorts of the "Angels" arc after it was CutShort[[/note]] has a race of SufficientlyAdvancedAliens who may the "Gods" who created humankind and/or the angels from the previous arc.
90** The "City of Wind" arc has Kabrakan, a giant gold robot created to guard the titular city by a race of AncientAstronauts.
91** The "Edda" trilogy of chapters has Chieftain Tekk [[spoiler:who is really a MadScientist obsessed with Norse mythology named Odin.]]
92** The "Snow Carnival" one-shot has the "Snow Witch", who turns out [[spoiler:to be a {{cyborg}}, and not really evil so much as a victim of her MadScientist father's experiments.]]
93** The "Deinonychus" one-shot has [[spoiler:Dr. Keeley, a Black Ghost operative who coerced Dr. Ross into helping him bring back the organization's reign.]]
94** The "Ghost Island" one-shot has Dr. Friedkin, a vengeful MadScientist seeking revenge on 009.
95** The "Undersea Pyramid" arc has the M organization, a criminal gang of "international tomb raiders".
96** The "Golden Triangle" arc has [[TheRemnant Neo Black Ghost]], a reforged successor organization to the original Black Ghost.
97** The "Arctic Ghost" arc has Neo Black Ghost executive [[TheBaroness Julia Manoda]].
98** The "Comp-Utopia" arc has [[spoiler:the Sphynx supercomputer or rather, the VirtualGhost possessing it.]]
99** The "Pharaoh Virus" arc has an unnamed MadScientist working for Neo Black Ghost who seeks to get his hands on the titular virus so he can pull a PoisonAndCureGambit.
100** The "Aphrodite" arc has Neo Black Ghost executive Aphrodite, who runs their base on Aphrodite Island.
101%%* ''Manga/DeliciousInDungeon'' has [[spoiler: The Red Dragon as the villain of the first arc. After its death, the Lunatic Magician takes over as the BigBad of the series.]]
102* ''Manga/DemonSlayerKimetsuNoYaiba'': Except for the [[GrandFinale ''Sunrise Countdown'' arc]] (that [[spoiler: shows the defining battle against [[BigBad Muzan]] and his subordinates]]) and two other training arcs, each arc has a major antagonist that Tanjiro and his friends must defeat, with Muzan as the overarching main villain of the series.
103** ''Final Selection'' arc: Teoni, a huge and monsterous demon obsessed with killing the students of Urokodaki who participate in the final election in revenge for defeating and trapping him on the Fujikasane mountain.
104** ''First Mission'' arc: The Demon in the Bog, a demon divided into three personalities who kidnaps and devours teenage girls. He ends becoming the first enemy that Tanjiro confronts as an official demon slayer.
105** ''Asakusa'' arc: [[BigBad Muzan Kibutsuji]] debuts, but he ends leaving the task to kill Tanjiro to Yahaba and Susamaru, two faithful demons that aspire to join the Twelve Kizuki and end up targeting Tamayo too.
106** ''Drum House'' arc: Kyogai, a former member of the Twelve Kizuki who lost his ability to become stronger by eating humans and wants to regain his former glory by eating Kiyoshi, a human with rare blood.
107** ''Natagumo Mountain'' arc: The Lower Rank Five Kuzuki Rui, a tyrannical and cruel demon who forces his followers to act out familial roles.
108** ''Mugen Train'' arc: Enmu, the Lower Rank One Kuzuki and the SoleSurvivor of Muzan's slaughter of the Lower Ranks, who is tasked by his master to kill Tanjiro and Flame Hashira Rengoku by infiltrating a train and planning to kill their wills with his dream-controlling abilities. [[spoiler: After his death, Upper Rank Three Akaza takes the role as the main villain, wanting Rengoku to join Muzan due to his impressive abilities and ultimately killing him.]]
109** ''Red Light District''/''Entertainment'' District arc: The Upper Rank Six Kuzuki Daki [[spoiler: ([[BigBadDuumvirate along with her]] stronger older brother Gyutaro)]], a childish and vicious demon posing as a prostitute in the red light district, who caused the mysterious deaths of some people and the disappearance of Uzui's wives.
110** ''Swordsmith Village'' arc: The Upper Rank Four [[BigBadDuumvirate and]] Upper Rank Five Kuzuki Hantengu and [[MadArtist Gyokko]], who travel to the Swordsmith Village to cripple the Demon Slayers by killing the people tasked with forging their swords.
111** ''Infinity Castle'' arc: [[spoiler:A BossBonanza where all the remaining Hashira and the main cast have to take on all of the remaining Upper Ranks of Kokushibo, Douma, Akaza as well as the new Uppers Ranks, Nakime and Kaigaku, as the toughest and most personal battles in the series by far. Which will all lead towards the finale of taking down Muzan once and for all.]]
112* ''Manga/DeathNote'' had the Yotsuba Group, specifically Kyosuke Higuchi, as the third Kira who became the main threat for a handful of episodes during Light's MemoryGambit.
113* ''Franchise/{{Digimon}}'' loves this trope.
114** ''Anime/DigimonAdventure'':
115*** Devimon in the Black Gears/File Island Arc. He infects good Digimon with Black Gears, corrupts Leomon, and gets Ogremon to work for him.
116*** Etemon in the Dark Network Arc, being the leader of the Dark Network.
117*** Myotismon in the Eight Child Arc. He seeks to find and kill the eighth child and rule both worlds.
118*** The Dark Masters in the Spiral Mountain Arc, who have taken over the digital wold (and this arc is divided into four arcs, one for each of the Dark Masters), with Apocalymon serving as the TrueFinalBoss of the last two episodes.
119** ''Anime/DigimonAdventure02'':
120*** The Digimon Emperor/Ken Ichijouji in the Digimon Emperor Arc, playing a similar game to Devimon.
121*** Arukenimon and Mummymon, with Blackwargreymon serving as a WildCard, in the Control Spire Digimon/Destiny Stones Arc.
122*** Yukio Oikawa, with Daemon serving as a temporary [[BigBadEnsemble competition]] and [[spoiler:Myotismon]] as TheManBehindTheMan, in the Real World Arc.
123** ''Anime/DigimonTamers'':
124*** Yamaki in the Wild Ones arc. While the Wild Ones are the primary threat, Yamaki seeks to exterminate all Digimon. By the Deva arc he is demoted to secondary antagonist, and does a HeelFaceTurn midway through.
125*** Zhuqiaomon in the Deva arc, as the Devas sent to take over Earth, kill or enslave all humans, and capture Calumon are working for him.
126*** D-Reaper in the D-Reaper arc, who seeks to assimilate all humans and Digimon, and can be considered the BigBad of the series, as both Yamaki and Zhuqiaomon are now united with the Tamers against it.
127** ''Anime/DigimonFrontier'':
128*** Cherubimon for the first, longer arc. He plans to take over the digital world
129*** Lucemon for the second and final arc. His plan is to destroy the digital world and rebuild it in his name.
130** ''Anime/DigimonDataSquad'':
131*** Merukimon for the first arc. He wants to take revenge on humans for Kurata's invasion
132*** Akihiro Kurata for the second arc. His plan is to destroy all Digimon and the digital world and rule Earth. He can, however, be considered the BigBad of the whole season as his actions led to the threats of both Merukimon and King Drasil.
133*** King Drasil for the third and final arc, intending to kill all humans after Kurata's threat.
134* ''[[Manga/DrStone Dr. STONE]]'':
135** Prologue Saga: [[KnightTemplar Tsukasa Shishio]]
136** Ishigami Village Saga: [[TokenEvilTeammate Magma]]
137** Stone Wars: Tsukasa and [[TheStarscream Hyoga]]
138** Source of the Petrification Saga: [[EvilChancellor Minister Ibara]]
139** Truth of the Pertification Saga: [[EvilMentor Dr. Xeno]] and [[TheDragon Stanley Snyder]]
140** Stone to Space Saga: [[BigBad Why-Man]]
141* While ''Manga/EdensZero'' does reveal who its BigBad truly is halfway through, most of the series' individual story arcs consist of standalone villains who provide one-off obstacles for the heroes to overcome.
142** The ''Norma'' arc has Sibir, a local gang leader who finds an android from the future, Pino, and tries to use her technology to get rich, forcing Rebecca and Shiki to stop him from messing with the future.
143** The ''Skull Fairy'' arc switches the formula up. The ArcVillain appears to be Elsie Crimson, a SpacePirate who takes an interest in Shiki Granbell due to her own personal history with Shiki's grandfather, Demon King Ziggy. She captures Aqua Wing, Rebecca's ship, and says she intends to sell Shiki, Rebecca, Happy, Weisz, and Pino all off to human trafficers on the planet Guilst. Shiki challenges her to a fight for possession of her ship, which she accepts. But in a twist, it's not only revealed that [[ActuallyADoomBot the Elsie that fought Shiki was just a copy]], but that Elsie [[GoodAllAlong never planned to harm the heroes to begin with and always intended to give the ship to Shiki]], [[{{Troll}} she just enjoyed making them uncomfortable]] and didn't think it'd be as fun if she just handed it over to them. That ship in question was not the real Skull Fairy, but instead [[TitleDrop Edens Zero]] itself, Ziggy's ship which he tasked Elsie with giving to Shiki. This puts her firmly in the camp of AloofAlly rather than a villain, AmbiguouslyEvil though she may still be.
144** The ''Guilst'' arc adds another twist to the formula. Illega, a FatBastard who prides himself as TheCollector of beautiful women, commissions the kidnapping of Rebecca Bluegarden, but he is a NonActionBigBad who's barely even a danger to normal people, let alone those who use Ether Gear, and instead it's [[DrunkWithPower Fake Sister]], an identity thief hired by Illega to kidnap Rebecca, who serves as TheHeavy due to her connection to the real Sister Ivry, who Shiki and Rebecca are searching for due to Ivry's connection to the Edens Zero.
145** The ''Digitalis'' arc has Jamilov, an AxCrazy {{Griefer}} who hunts down players and slaughters [=NPCs=] in ''Rogue Fantasia'', the virtual planet Hermit Mio ran to escape the world that tormented her. Jamilov's real name is [[TheCracker Spider]], a two-bit tech support guy [[{{Narcissist}} who can't get enough of himself]], and "Jamilov" is simply his DigitalAvatar, a reflection of his SmallNameBigEgo. He's taken out pretty easily once Hermit finds the motivation to do so.
146** The ''Sun Jewel'' arc has [[AbusiveParents Madame Kurenai]], Homura's mother, a cruel tyrant whose every act of cruelty on the planet Sun Jewel is born from her insatiable {{Greed}} and mountain-sized ego. She serves as the ClimaxBoss for the anime's first season, as she is responsible for Valkyrie Yuna's disappearance, she's the reason for everything happening on the planet Sun Jewel, and she holds a very personal stake in Homura's character arc.
147** The ''Belial Gore'' arc has Drakken Joe. He was the GreaterScopeVillain for Sibir (who had Drakken as a fixer for his gang), Illega (lords over the planet Drakken ruined), and Jamilov (tried to impress him). His influence extends all the way to Sun Jewel, because Kurenai was indebted to him before she became ruler of her own planet, he stole Satellite Blaze from her for his own agenda, and she coveted his position as a member of the Oracion Seis Galactica. Belial Gore is the first time he finally makes a move against the heroes directly. Drakken Joe plans to steal Rebecca's ability [[spoiler:so he could stay forever young]], and things go so beyond the pale that Rebecca [[spoiler:awakens Cat Leaper and rewinds time]] just so they can even have a shot at beating him. With the knowledge she has [[spoiler:of the future]], Rebecca helps her crew counter every single one of Drakken's plans, and he finally loses due to the combined efforts of Shiki and Weisz, thus establishing Drakken as a DiscOneFinalBoss.
148** The ''Edens One'' arc involves the crew returning to Granbell and Shiki reuniting with [[spoiler:a reconstituted Ziggy]], who reveals himself to be hellbent on enslaving mankind. He unveils his ship, the Edens One, piloted by [[spoiler:Captain Connor]], and reveals his QuirkyMinibossSquad, the Four Dark Stars, as they all try to kill the crew of the Edens Zero. They fail due to the timely appearance of Elsie Crimson, who finally returns as a definitive friend and ally of the crew. But it also firmly establishes [[spoiler:the former Demon King]] as the BigBad of the series. Everything that happens after is a result of his actions and decisions.
149** The ''Red Cave'' arc switches the formula yet again. There is NoAntagonist at all. The crew simply lands on a planet, discovers some of its secrets, learns a way to reach Mother quicker, finds a temple that introduces Mother's Relics to the story (which can help them find her sooner), and befriends Nadia, the guardian of the temple, who was waiting for her beloved Andrew to return with a Relic to restore their planet back to the way it was. Andrew himself is long dead but his ship carries the exact Relic needed to restore Red Cave to its former glory. The arc therefore serves as more of a character building arc as well as both a BeachEpisode and a BreatherEpisode.
150** The ''Foresta'' arc adds yet another twist. There are ''two'' {{Greater Scope Villain}}s: Poseidon Nero, who rules over the planet Foresta, and [[spoiler:Ziggy himself]], who caused a robot uprising. The robots kill all rebelling humans and enslave the rest, putting them on leashes and treating them like dogs. Nero sends his Beast Squads to quell the uprising, but they're small fries at the end of the day, and the robots are a group-wide obstacle with no single representative. Rather, there are ''two'' characters who split the role of ArcVillain between them: James "Justice" Holloway, who is so hellbent on [[spoiler:killing his ex-girlfriend Elsie]] that he attacks Shiki and Homura, and [[spoiler:Doctor Muller]], who was left in charge of the satellite that [[spoiler:Ziggy]] used to corrupt the robots of Foresta. Once James is forced to withdraw, [[spoiler:Muller]] is left as the ClimaxBoss of Season 2, owing to his deep involvement in Hermit, Kris, and Kleene's pasts.
151** The ''Sandra'' arc once again switches the formula up. In response to [[spoiler:Ziggy and Muller]]'s actions at Foresta, Emperor Poseidon Nero orders a meeting with his top lieutenants, the Oceans Six, but once he rolls his trusty dice, they determine he should not get involved, so he pawns it off to his AxCrazy adopted son, Poseidon Shura, who publicly declares war against ''all'' of machinekind and begins cleansing five android-populated planets. Shura's ultimate plan is to use the Aoi Cosmos' All-Link System to kill every single android at Aoi. [[spoiler:Ziggy]], meanwhile, wants to use the same system to brainwash all machines, repeating what he did at Foresta but on a much grander scale. On top of that, the Interstellar Union Army engages in battle with Nero's forces, sparking the beginning of the series' first WarArc. Once the Edens Zero crew catches wind of this, they travel to a desert planet called Sandra, which is full of anti-Nero revolutionaries led by Goodwin, who reveals that [[spoiler:Laguna]] was a former revolutionary who left their group. Laguna brought the Edens Zero crew over to Sandra specifically so both groups could team up to stop Nero and Shura before it's too late. However, once again, neither [[spoiler:Ziggy]] nor Shura are directly involved with Sandra specifically. Instead, Shura sent Orc, a member of the Beast Squad who lost to Shiki at Foresta, to crack down on the brewing revolution at Sandra. Orc is the closeest thing to an ArcVillain for Sandra, and he wanted to use a nuclear bomb to murder as many people at Sandra as possible. But even with an upgrade to his powers, Orc loses to Shiki in ''one punch'', and Shiki successfully throws the bomb off-world so it doesn't harm anyone. All told, Sandra is more of a set-up arc for what would proceed next.
152** The ''Nero 66'' arc forms the bulk of the Aoi War, featuring Shura as TheHeavy and Nero forming a BigBadEnsemble with [[spoiler:Ziggy]].
153* ''Manga/{{Eyeshield 21}}'', as a series about a football team, lacks an overarching villain, with most of its conflicts being settled over the course of individual matches. During the Kanto Regional Tournament Arc, however, the series gains a temporary BigBad in the form of Reiji "Marco" Maruko, captain of the Deimon Devil-Bats' {{evil counterpart}}s, the Hakushu Dinosaurs. While the Devil-Bats still play against other teams, Marco's scheming drives much of the plot on and off the field, as various teams attempt different strategies to stop him and his [[TheJuggernaut monstrous centre]], [[TheDragon Rikiya Gao]]. After grinding their way through Deimon's former adversaries in the Taiyo Sphinx and Seibu Wild Gunmen, Marco and his Dinosaurs become the final team that the Devil-Bats have to face to claim the Kanto Regional Championship and move onto the Christmas Bowl.
154* ''Manga/FairyTail'':
155** ''[[Manga/FairyTailZero Fairy Tail ZERO]]'' : [[SmallRoleBigImpact Geoffrey and Blue Skull guild]].
156** Macao arc: [[BitchInSheepsClothing Bora]], the series' StarterVillain.
157** Daybreak arc: [[DirtyOldMan Duke Everlue]].
158** Eisenwald arc: [[SinisterScythe Erigor]] and Eisenwald guild.
159** Sub-Zero Emperor Lyon arc: [[RivalTurnedEvil Lyon Vastia]], with Deilora as the GreaterScopeVillain and [[spoiler:Zalty/Ultear Milkovich]] as TheWomanBehindTheMan.
160** Phantom Lord arc: [[SmugSuper Jose Porla]] and [[DrivenByEnvy Phantom Lord guild]], with [[AbusiveParents Jude Heartfilia]] as TheManBehindTheMan.
161** Tower of Heaven arc: [[BrainwashedAndCrazy Jellal Fernandez]], with [[spoiler:Ultear]] once again TheWomanBehindTheMan.
162** The Battle of Fairy Tail arc: [[TokenEvilTeammate Laxus Dreyar]] and the Thunder God Tribe.
163** Oración Seis arc: [[EvilGenius Brain]]/[[spoiler:[[SuperpoweredEvilSide Zero]]]] and Oración Seis guild.
164** Edolas arc: [[TheCaligula King Faust]].
165** Sirius Island arc: [[FallenHero Hades]] and Grimoire Heart guild.
166** Grand Magic Games arc: The first half has [[SocialDarwinist Jiemma]] [[BadBoss Orland]] and [[BigBadWannabe Ivan Dreyar]], along with Saber Tooth guild and Raven Tail guild respectively. The second half has [[spoiler:[[FutureMeScaresMe Future Rogue]]]], who's the whole arc's BigBad.
167** Sun Village arc: Drake, Hiroshi and Rala.
168** Tartaros arc: [[DragonInChief Mard Geer Tartaros]] and [[OurDemonsAreDifferent Tartaros guild]].
169** Avatar arc: [[BigBadWannabe Alok and Avatar]].
170** Alvarez Empire arc: [[WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds Zeref]] and [[TheDreaded Acnologia]], who officially take the role of the series’ BigBadEnsemble.
171* ''Manga/FoodWars'' lacked one during the early {{Story Arc}}s, though [[AcademicAlphaBitch Erina Nakiri]] came the closest, fitting TheRival role to the eponymous protagonist Soma Yukihira. Certain members of the [[AbsurdlyPowerfulStudentCouncil Council of Ten Masters]] would sprinkle in some antagonism for Soma and his classmates in later arcs, but weren't truly villains themselves, at least not until the TyrantTakesTheHelm by recruiting certain members of the Ten Masters and oust the BigGood from power, forming a "Central" organization and eliminating all dissent against their rule. From this point on, Central's leader becomes the established antagonist for the "Central saga".
172* ''Manga/{{Gintama}}'': Whenever the serie get into serious arc, and sometimes for a comedic one as well, a character specific to this arc will appear and serve as it's main antagonist. Kamataro Ito for the Shinsengumi Rebellion arc, Otohime for the Ryugujo arc, Hosen for the Yoshiwara, Kintoki Sakata for the [[HostileShowtakeover Kintama]] arc, and so on... This character may also double as a KnightOfCerebus depending on how serious the situation get.
173* ''Manga/GTOTheEarlyYears'':
174** Machida is a StarterVillain, only appearing for a few chapters before Eikichi beats him up.
175** Yokokawa for the Valentines Day Parade arc.
176** Saejima and Kamata for the Mad Dogs of Kamakura arc. [[DefeatMeansFriendship After the Oni-Baku beat them]], they become close friends and BashBrothers.
177** Fumiya Shindoji for the Ayumi arc.
178** Okubo is the villain for the eponymous arc.
179** Yoko Minamino for the Nanno arc, though he gets flanderized into a ButtMonkey afterwards.
180** Takezawa and the Idaten gang for the Idaten arc.
181** Junya Akutsu for the Midnight Angels Revival arc. Supporting arc villains are [[SuperpoweredEvilSide Yasha]] and Kamishima (though Kamishima is a case of TheOnlyOneAllowedToDefeatYou towards Akutsu).
182** The Yokohama Cavalry, Nakagaki and Mauchi, for the Yokohama Cavalry arc.
183** Yagyo Atsuki (revealed to be [[spoiler:Tamaru]]) for the eponymous arc.
184** Kashiya and Joey for the Dead End Junkie arc.
185* ''Manga/HenkyouNoRoukishiBardLoen'': Kaldus Coendera is a persistent threat to Bard Loen and the Tersia Family for the first three volumes. He and his family are sending men to attack Bard after a seal and the "Double Whirlpool", which are parts of a decades-old plan involving the royal family.
186* ''Manga/HunterXHunter:''
187** The Hunter Exam Arc: [[MonsterClown Hisoka]].
188** The Zoldyck Family Arc: The arc didn't have a true antagonist, but Kikyo Zoldyck was pretty close.
189** The Tower of Heaven Arc: Hisoka again.
190** The York New Arc: Chrollo Lucilfer.
191** The Greed Island Arc: [[MadBomber Genthru]].
192** The Chimera Ant Arc: Meruem.
193** The Hunter Chairman Election Arc: Illumi Zoldyck and Pariston Hill.
194** The Dark Continent Arc: While a central villain has yet to be revealed that arc has built up several different villains thus far, those being the Kakin Royal Family whose succession war threatens everyone trying to reach the Dark Continent, the Phantom Troupe [[spoiler:now that Chrollo has his Nen again]], and Hisoka as a WildCard.
195* ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'':
196** ''[[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventurePhantomBlood Phantom Blood]]'': [[FromNobodyToNightmare Dio]] [[OurVampiresAreDifferent Brando]].
197** ''[[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureBattleTendency Battle Tendency]]'': [[GodhoodSeeker Kars]] and the [[HumanoidAbomination Pillar Men]].
198** ''[[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureStardustCrusaders Stardust Crusaders]]'': [[TheBusCameBack DIO... again]].
199** ''[[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureDiamondIsUnbreakable Diamond is Unbreakable]]'': [[WellIntentionedExtremist Keicho Nijimura]] for the first half and [[SerialKiller Yoshikage Kira]] for the second half.
200** ''[[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureGoldenWind Golden Wind]]'': [[TheDon Diavolo]].
201** ''[[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureStoneOcean Stone Ocean]]'': [[KnightTemplar Enrico Pucci]].
202** ''[[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureSteelBallRun Steel Ball Run]]'': [[PresidentEvil Funny Valentine]].
203** ''Manga/{{JoJolion}}'': [[spoiler:[[TheDogWasTheMastermind Toru]]]].
204* ''Manga/JujutsuKaisen'':
205** ''Jujutsu Kaisen 0'': Suguru Geto, who orchestrates the Night Parade of a Hundred Demons as a distraction so he could invade Jujutsu High and take control of Rika, a Special-Grade Vengeful Spirit that he believed could help him wipe out all non-sorcerers.
206** ''Vs. Mahito Arc'': Mahito, a Special-Grade Curse Spirit formed from humanity's collective fear of other humans. Yuji and [[ArcHero Nanami]] investigate the [[ForcedTransformation transfigured humans]] he's left in his wake, and his corruption and manipulation of a bullied student named Junpei.
207** ''Kyoto Goodwill Event Arc'': Gakuganji, the principal of Kyoto Prefectural Jujutsu High School, tries to force his students to assassinate Yuji for the threat he poses as Sukuna's vessel. Then [[ConflictKiller Hanami]], the Special-Grade Curse Nature Spirit, attacks the school and students, forcing everyone to band together to defeat him.
208** ''Death Painting Arc'': Eso and Kechizu, two of the titular Death Paintings, who are after one of Sukuna's fingers.
209** ''Gojo's Past Arc'': Toji Fushiguro, an assassin who has no cursed energy, but gained superhuman physical powers in return, who's out to assassinate the Star Plasma Vessel, Riko Amanai.
210** ''Shibuya Incident Arc'': [[spoiler:Kenjaku, a Curse User who's taken over the corpse of]] Suguru Geto, steps out of the shadows and reveals himself to be the mastermind of the Shibuya Incident as well as the previous arcs, while Mahito acts as the [[TheHeavy most persistent threat]] and the arc's [[ClimaxBoss final big fight]].
211** ''Perfect Preparation Arc'': Naoya, Ogi and Jinichi Zen'in form an alliance to seize control of the Zen'in Clan [[spoiler:following Megumi being named heir]], with Naoya being the most recurring threat to the heroes and final opponent for Maki.
212** ''The Culling Game Arc'': [[spoiler:Kenjaku]] is the main villain as he orchestrated the titular game across Japan and pulls strings to initiate his masterplan of [[spoiler:forcibly merging every person in Japan with Lord Tengen as part of his experiments with cursed energy]]. While he works in the background to achieve this, several antagonists drive the plot in the colonies where the Culling Game is being held.
213*** Tokyo Colony No. 1 has Hiromi Higuruma and Reggie Star acting as the main opponents to Yuji and Megumi. Higuruma is a disillusioned defense attorney who's newly awakened as Curse User and has killed enough people to earn 100 points in the game, which Yuji wants so he can add a rule to the Culling Game. Reggie Star, meanwhile, targets Megumi to recruit him to his team at first, then kill him when he refuses, just because he wants the best odds of surviving the Culling Game. Of the two, Reggie Star is the more malicious while Hiromi Higuruma [[spoiler:pulls a HeelFaceTurn after his fight with Yuji]].
214*** Tokyo Colony No. 2 has Hajime Kashimo acting as the main antagonist towards [[ArcHero Kinji Hakari]]. Kashimo is a reincarnated sorcerer who only agreed to be reborn because he's a BloodKnight who never found a WorthyOpponent in his original era. His goal is to keep killing during the Culling Game until he can finally have a chance to face [[spoiler:Sukuna]].
215*** Sendai Colony has two reincarnated sorcerers, Ryu Ishigori and Takako Uro, as the two main threats faced by Yuta Okkotsu, though [[spoiler:Ishigori lasts longer]]. Ryu Ishigori reincarnated because he's a ChallengeSeeker who felt his life was incomplete whereas Takako Uro was a ProfessionalKiller who was executed as a scapegoat by her clan and wants to use the Culling Game as a second chance at life to make a name for herself.
216*** Sakurajima Colony has the Worm Curse being the main enemy faced by Maki Zen'in. It's actually the Vengeful Cursed Spirit of [[spoiler:Naoya Zen'in]] who invades the Culling Game solely to get revenge on Maki for leading to his death and [[spoiler:destroying their clan]].
217* As each StoryArc of ''Franchise/LyricalNanoha'' covers a specific incident, all installments have their own Arc Villain.
218** ''Anime/MagicalGirlLyricalNanoha'': [[EvilMatriarch Precia Testarossa]]
219** ''Anime/MagicalGirlLyricalNanohaAs'': [[HeroAntagonist The Wolkenritter]] and [[ArtifactOfDoom the Book of Darkness]]. In TheMovie, the role of the [[EnemyWithout Darkness of the Book of Darkness]] (now known as [=NachtWal=]) is expanded to make it the main villain of the remake.
220** ''VideoGame/MagicalGirlLyricalNanohaAsPortable: The Battle of Aces'': [[OmnicidalManiac Lord Dearche]]
221** ''Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha As Portable: The Gears of Destiny'': [[TheFatalist Unbreakable Dark (U-D)]]
222** ''Anime/MagicalGirlLyricalNanohaStrikers'': [[MadScientist Jail Scaglietti]]
223** ''AudioPlay/StrikersSoundStageX'': [[RightWingMilitiaFanatic Tredia Graze]] [[spoiler:turns out to be dead, and [[DetectiveMole Runessa Magnus]] [[DragonAscendant is the one continuing his goal]]]]
224** ''Manga/MagicalGirlLyricalNanohaVivid'': [[LighterAndSofter No one]]
225** ''Anime/VividStrike'': [[BrokenAce Rinne Berlinetta]]
226** ''Manga/MagicalRecordLyricalNanohaForce'': [[TheFamilyThatSlaysTogether The Hückebein]], [[MeleeATrois and later]], [[CorruptCorporateExecutive Hades Vandein]]
227** ''Anime/MagicalGirlLyricalNanohaReflection'': [[BigBadDuumvirate Kyrie Florian and Iris]]. [[spoiler:[[FalseFriend Until it turns out that Iris is just using Kyrie]].]]
228** ''Anime/MagicalGirlLyricalNanohaDetonation'': [[spoiler:[[TheSociopath Phil Maxwell]]]]
229* ''Anime/MarvelDiskWarsTheAvengers'':
230** Loki
231** Red Skull
232** Ultron
233** Dormammu, with Loki [[DemotedToDragon as his dragon]]
234** [[spoiler:Loki again for the GrandFinale]]
235* ''Manga/MissKobayashisDragonMaid'' has Ilulu, who acted as the main antagonist for Volume 4 of the manga, and Azad for Volume 8. The series otherwise lacks recurring villains since it's primarily a SliceOfLife.
236* ''Manga/MobPsycho100'' features a different villain during almost every arc, with some exceptions if certain arc decides to focus on things that don't need an established antagonist.
237** (LOL) Cult Arc: [[StarterVillain Lord Dimple]]
238** Teruki Hanazawa Arc: The eponymous [[EvilCounterpart Teruki Hanazawa]].
239** Big Cleanup Arc: A BigBadDuumvirate between StudentCouncilPresident [[KnightTemplar Shinji Kamuro]] and [[BrokenAce Ritsu Kageyama]], Mob's own brother.
240** 7th Division Arc: [[QuirkyMinibossSquad The Scars]] from [[NebulousEvilOrganisation Claw]], with [[GravityMaster Ishiguro]] as their leader [[spoiler:and Toichiro Suzuki as TheManBehindTheMan]].
241** Keiji Mogami Arc: [[HumanoidAbomination Keiji Mogami]]
242** Separate Ways Arc: While the main conflict between Mob and Reigen was caused by the later's selfishness, is [[EvilOldFolks Kirin Jodo]] who sets up as the antagonist during the second half of the arc, trying to ruin Reigen's life and reputation as a revenge [[DisproportionateRetribution for striking him in the stomach]].
243** World Domination Arc: [[AGodAmI Toichiro Suzuki]]
244** Divine Tree Arc: [[YourMindMakesItReal Lord Psycho Helmet]]
245** ???% Arc: [[EnemyWithin ???]]
246* ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamIronBloodedOrphans''
247** Season 1 is divided into several mini-arcs, each with their own lead antagonist.
248*** CGS Arc: Haeda Gunnel, the abusive leader of the CGS First Group who the Third Group revolt against to found Tekkadan.
249*** Iron-Blooded Arc: Coral Conrad, the corrupt head of Gjallarhorn's Mars Branch, who's being [[TheManBehindTheMan paid by]] Nobliss Gordon to kill Kudelia.
250*** Teiwaz Arc: Maruba Arkay initially, having enlisted Teiwaz and Naze Turbine's help to stop Tekkadan. After Naze has a change of heart, the rest of the arc has NoAntagonist and is instead about Tekkadan becoming a subsidiary of Teiwaz.
251*** Brewers Arc: Brooke Kabayan, leader of the [[AntagonistTitle Brewers]], a group of SpacePirates who've been employed by Gjallarhorn to stall Tekkadan. Although Brooke's second-in-command Kudal Cadel is the [[DragonInChief lead threat]].
252*** Colony Arc: [[CorruptCorporateExecutive Nobliss Gordon]], who seeks to assassinate Kudelia to incite unrest and riots in the Dort Colonies, so he can [[WarForFunAndProfit profit off of it]].
253*** Earth Descent Arc: Carta Issue, who heads the forces pursuing Tekkadan all throughout the arc.
254*** Earth Arc: Iznario Fareed, a member of the Seven Stars of Gjallarhorn who seeks to bolster his power in the Earth Sphere by using underhanded tactics to ensure the prime minister election in Arbrau goes in favor of his preferred candidate.
255** Season 2 can also be divided into several mini-arcs.
256*** #26-29: Sandoval Reuters, leader of the {{Space Pirate}}s group Dawn Horizon Corps. He starts off under the employ of [[BigBadWannabe Allium Gyojan]], but is a much bigger threat and soon breaks off from him to keep fighting Tekkadan on his own.
257*** #30-33: Galan Mossa, a mercenary employed by Rustal Elion to start a proxy war between Arbrau and SAU, with Rustal himself serving as the GreaterScopeVillain.
258*** #34-38: The Hashmal, a rampaging Mobile Armor inadvertently awakened by Gjallarhorn commander Iok Kujan.
259*** #39-42: A BigBadDuumvirate between Iok Kujan, who's looking to get revenge on [=McGillis=] and Tekkadan for humiliating him in the previous arc, and Jasley Donomikols, the treacherous and [[TheStarscream power-hungry]] NumberTwo of Teiwaz.
260*** The remaining stretch of episodes has Rustal Elion, who was pulling the strings behind many of the enemies Tekkadan battled all throughout, before fighting them directly when Tekkadan joins [=McGillis=] in his revolution against Gjallarhorn.
261* ''Manga/{{Lady}}'': Mary Waverly, but it differs in both the anime and the manga.
262 ** [[spoiler: Manga: After Lynn returns to Japan, Mary moves there a little later so she can make her life hell. Mary hides the letters that Sarah and George have been sending her, and when an important tournament comes up, Mary cuts the reins of Lynn's horse and causes her to fall. Once she's caught in the act, she's disgraced and Sonoko ends her friendship with her, but Mary doesn't care and returns to the UK.]]
263** [[spoiler: Anime: In Season 2, it's revealed that Mary has still not gotten over George rejecting her mother. As she's now more prepared and academically inclined, she joins Lynn's school with plans of ruining her reputation, and using her connections with her grandfather to push the Russells out of their noble status.]]
264* ''Manga/MyHeroAcademia'': [[WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds Tomura]] [[PersonOfMassDestruction Shigaraki]] and [[ItsAllAboutMe All]] [[DiabolicalMastermind For]] [[CardCarryingVillain One]] are the most prominent villains in the series, but many arcs have their own villains:
265** Entrace Exam, Quirk Apprehension Test and Battle Trial Arcs: [[TheRival Katsuki]] [[BarbaricBully Bakugo]]. The [[StarterVillain Sludge Villain]] from the first chapter counts as well.
266** USJ Arc: The Nomu Shigaraki brought to kill All Might.
267** Sports Festival Arc: [[BrokenAce Shoto]] [[HeroAntagonist Todoroki]] (though he's a HeroAntagonist), with [[AbusiveParents Endeavor]] as the GreaterScopeVillain.
268** Hero Killer Arc: HeroKiller [[KnightTemplar Stain]].
269** Final Exams Arc: U.A. High [[BadassTeacher teaching staff]]. Justified with fighting them being part of the exam, although some of them did go a bit too far.
270** School Trip Arc: [[QuirkyMiniBossSquad Vanguard]] [[EliteMooks Action]] [[QualityOverQuantity Squad]]. [[BloodKnight Muscular]] is a more particular example for his role in arc’s subplot.
271** Provisional Hero License Exam Arc: Gang Orca, who, like U.A. High staff, acts as a villain during the exam, and Inasa Yoarashi, due to his ItsPersonal with [[SinsOfOurFathers Endeavor]]. [[spoiler:[[MasterOfDisguise Himiko]] [[DepravedBisexual Toga]]]] is closer to the role than they are.
272** Shie Hassaikai Arc: [[BigBadWannabe Kai Chisaki]] and [[{{Yakuza}} Shie Hassaikai]].
273** Remedial Course Arc: [[EnfantTerrible Masegaki Elementary School Students]].
274** School Festival Arc: [[GentlemanThief Gentle]] [[AttentionWhore Criminal]] and [[UndyingLoyalty La Brava]].
275** Pro Hero Arc: The High End Nomu, Hood, Dabi unleashed on Endeavor.
276** Joint Training Arc: [[SitcomArchnemesis Neito Monoma]], but only because of his antagonism of Class 1A during the training.
277** Meta Liberation Army Arc: [[VillainWithGoodPublicity Re-Destro]] and [[YourTerroristsAreOurFreedomFighters Meta Liberation Army]].
278** Endeavor Agency Arc: [[SuicideByCop Ending]], [[spoiler:with Dabi as the ManBehindTheMan]].
279** Dark Hero Arc: [[AntiVillain Lady Nagant]].
280** U.A. Traitor Arc: [[spoiler:[[TheMole Yuga]] [[RegretfulTraitor Aoyama]]]], but only because of his status as AFO's mole in U.A.
281* ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'' and [[Franchise/{{Naruto}} others]]:
282** Gato from the Land of Waves arc is great example. He is the central antagonist of the Land of Waves arc, but he is of no importance to the overarching story and is just there to be the first villain. After his death heroes quickly forget about him and continue their adventures to the next arc.
283** Although Gato is the driving force behind the antagonism, Zabuza Momochi serves as the main threat as a hired hitman of the "Land of Waves" arc.
284** Zaku Abumi only appears during the Chunin Exams, and briefly as a corpse during the Sound-Sand Invasion. Never mentioned again afterwards.
285** Furido [[spoiler:(Kazuma)]] for the Sora filler arc of ''Shippuden''.
286** The Akatsuki leader, Pain, serves as the main antagonist of the ''Pain's Assault Arc''. He was also given a major role in the ''Itachi Pursuit Arc''. For filler, he was the biggest threat in the ''Tsuchigumo Kinjutsu Arc''.
287** Mitsuki, the very first enemy Naruto has encountered at the start of the series, is the main antagonist of the "[[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Mizuki Strikes Back]]" anime {{Filler}} arc.
288** The New Seven Ninja Swordsman of the Mist, lead by Shizuma Hoshigaki, are the main villains of the Field Trip arc in the ''Manga/{{Boruto}}'' anime.
289** A BigBadDuumvirate between Victor and Deepa in Kara Actuation Arc.
290* ''Manga/NegimaMagisterNegiMagi'':
291** [[OurVampiresAreDifferent Evangeline A. K. [=McDowell=]]] for the Child Teacher arc (usually called the Evangeline arc).
292** [[SmugSnake Chisuga Amagasaki]] for the Kyoto arc.
293** [[KidFromTheFuture Chao Lingshen]] for the Mahorafest arc.
294** [[RealityWarper Fate Averrunucus]] [[spoiler:and the [[GreaterScopeVillain Lifemaker]]]] for the Magic World arc.
295* The ''Anime/PokemonTheSeries'' anime makes Team Plasma (with Colress and Ghetsis in particular) the villains of the ''Episode N'' arc in ''[[Anime/PokemonTheSeriesBlackAndWhite Best Wishes]]''. [[RotatingArcs Less straightforward and more spaced-out examples]] are Team Magma and Aqua in ''[[Anime/PokemonTheSeriesRubyAndSapphire Advanced]]'' and Team Galactic in ''[[Anime/PokemonTheSeriesDiamondAndPearl Diamond and Pearl]]''.
296** Lysandre (of the EvilMentor kind, that ArcHero Alain doesn't know of) for the Mega Evolution Specials, before his organization, Team Flare follows Team Plasma's lead as the main villains of ''[[Anime/PokemonTheSeriesXY XYZ]]''.
297** Guzma, the previously unseen boss of the [[RecurringBoss recurring]] QuirkyMinibossSquad Team Skull, serves as the main antagonist of the Alola League TournamentArc in ''[[Anime/PokemonTheSeriesSunAndMoon Sun & Moon]]''.
298** Chairman Rose, the BigBad of ''VideoGame/PokemonSwordAndShield'', is the main villain of an four-episode storyline in ''Anime/PokemonJourneysTheSeries''.
299* ''Manga/PumpkinNight'': Naruto Kuroki in Part 1,Sae Kuroki in Part 2,and The CEO of Farms in Part 3.
300* ''Anime/SailorMoon'':
301** Series 1: The Dark Kingdom
302** Sailor Moon R: Filler Arc: Ali and En, the Maikaiju aliens
303** Sailor Moon R: The Black Moon Arc: The Black Moon Clan
304** Sailor Moon S: The Death Busters
305** Sailor Moon Super S: The Dead Moon Circus, though Nehellenia bled into the first arc of Sailor Stars
306** Sailor Moon Sailor Stars: Shadow Galactica
307** [[Manga/SailorMoon The manga]] technically has a similar progression, though the arcs referred to each other and the final story arc reveals that each arc's BigBad is in reality a reincarnation of [[GreaterScopeVillain the final enemy in the series.]]
308* ''Anime/{{Shinzo}}'': Both seasons had a different Big Bad, but Season 1 also had the so-called Enterran Generals who were essentially mini-bosses working for the first Big Bad.
309* ''Manga/SoulEater'' has Medusa as the villain of the first arc who manages to unseal the BigBad Asura, but she mantains a significant presence throughout the series. Arachne is this in the Arachnophobia arc (and in the anime, she manages to get Asura on her side) and Noah/The Table of Contents in the Book of Eibon Arc. Asura hinself becomes the final antagonist in the Moon arc, though he is constantly mentioned thoughout the series as the ultimate enemy.
310** Shaula the youngest Gorgon sister in ''Manga/SoulEaterNot'', if one sees said prequel as an arc of its own.
311* ''Manga/SpyXFamily'':
312** Introduction Arc: Edgar, the leader of an Ostanian criminal organization.
313** Inushan Crisis Arc: [[RightWingMilitiaFanatic Keith Kepler]], the leader of an isolationist terrorist group trying to kickstart a war between Ostania and Westalis, by assassinating Minister Brantz.
314** Campbelldon Tennis arc: Cavi Campbell, a wealthy 56-year-old entrepreneur with connections to Ostania's criminal underworld and one of the organizers of Campbelldon, an underground tennis competition.
315** Great Adventure Cruise Arc: [[MysteriousInformant Snoops]], an information broker and assassin.
316** Red Circus Arc: Billy Squire, the leader of the titular terrorist group.
317* The ''Anime/{{Tamagotchi}}'' television series is composed of four installments.[[note]]Actually five, but the fifth is literally just already-existing episodes with new segments in-between and thus is often not counted as a proper part of the series.[[/note]] The third installment, ''Miracle Friends'', introduces Smartotchi a.k.a. Kamen X as the villain who is after the Dreambakutchis that Miraitchi and Clulutchi need to [[TrappedInThePast return to the future]]. Smartotchi does not appear at all in ''GO-GO Tamagotchi!'', the arc that follows ''Miracle Friends''.
318* Brilliant Dynamites Neon, or BDN for short, in ''Manga/{{Trigun}}''.
319* ''Manga/YuGiOh'': The Spirit of the Millenium Ring (aka Dark Bakura) is the series' recurring antagonist and overall BigBad. However, he is only the central villain of two arcs, and over the course of multiple story arcs he's regularly relegated to scheming in the background as the heroes are forced to confront more immediate threats:
320** Trial of the Mind: Shadi
321** Death-T: Seto Kaiba
322** Monster World: Dark Bakura
323** Duelist Kingdom: Pegasus J. Crawford
324** Dragons, Dice & Dungeons: Mr. Clown (manga-only)
325** Battle City: Marik Ishtar -> Dark Marik.
326** Millennium World: Dark Bakura, [[spoiler:Akhenaden, and Zorc Necrophades]]
327* The ''Anime/YuGiOh'' anime adds its own via filler arcs, and skips the first three arcs above (or adapted them into really short non-arcs).
328** Virtual Heroes: The Big Five
329** Virtual World: Noah & Gozaburo Kaiba.
330** Doma: Dartz
331** [=KaibaCorp=] Grand Prix: Ziegfried von Schroeder.
332* ''Manga/YuYuHakusho'':
333** Unlike the other sagas of the series, which feature an overarching antagonist throughout the saga's story, each of the arcs of the Spirit Detective saga focus on their own individual antagonist:
334*** Appointment as Spirit Detective arc: [[StarterVillain Jyaki]], a minor demon who [[DemonicPossession possesses the body of a Junior High student]] and {{blackmail}}s [[TheLancer Kuwabara]] into committing crimes for him. He serves as the target for the first case [[TheHero Yusuke]] is assigned as a Spirit Detective.
335*** Retrieval of the Three Artifacts of Darkness arc: [[BloodKnight Hiei]], the ringleader behind the theft of the Artifacts of Darkness, as well as the most dangerous of the trio and the last one Yusuke faces.
336*** Disciple Selection Trials arc: [[{{Sadist}} Rando]], a demon who poses as a human so as to enter [[TheMentor Genkai]]'s tournament in an attempt to become her apprentice and learn her Spirit Wave technique. Yusuke's entire reason for entering the tournament is due to being assigned to stop Rando.
337*** Maze Castle arc: [[BeautyIsBad Suzaku]], the leader of the [[TheFourGods Four Saint Beasts]], as well as the one who controls the Makai Insects and leads the Insects' attack on the Human World.
338*** Retrieval of Yukina arc: [[SmugSnake Gonzo Tarukane]], the culprit behind [[DamselInDistress Yukina]]'s capture, intending to use her ability to create jewels from her tears to [[{{Greed}} sell them to make money]]. However, Tarukane is [[NonActionBigBad never directly confronted by the heroes]], instead allowing the demons he's hired to do the fighting for him.
339** Dark Tournament saga: [[TheDon Sakyo]]. While [[NonActionBigBad never directly fought by the heroes]], and his [[TheDragon Dragon]], [[TheJuggernaut Younger Toguro]], ultimately proves to be [[DragonInChief the much bigger physical threat and more personal antagonist to the heroes]], Sakyo's status as TheTeamBenefactor to Team Toguro ultimately puts him on a higher level than Toguro, and his goal of building a portal connecting the Human and Demon Worlds proves to be the much bigger danger than Toguro's goal of finding a WorthyOpponent.
340** Chapter Black saga: [[TheChessmaster Shinobu Sensui]], the leader of the Sensui Seven and the ultimate mastermind behind the group's plan to open a portal between the Human and Demon Worlds so as to bring about TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt.
341** Three Kings saga: [[VisionaryVillain Yomi]]. While at first, all three of the titular Three Kings are of equal prominence in terms of their threat status, by the end of the saga, Yomi comes out on top as the biggest threat of the three, and ultimately ends up as the [[FinalBoss final opponent Yusuke faces in both the saga and the series as a whole]].

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