Sandbox / Magnificent Bastard Anime And Manga O To Z

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O - R

• Odd Taxi: Shigeru Kuroda is a Yakuza lieutenant who oversees most of the illegal activities within Tokyo. Using criminals Dobu and Yano as his primary enforcers, Kuroda leisurely spends most of his time giving them orders while Kuroda avoids getting his own hands dirty to dispel police suspicion. He also donates millions of yen to a charity organization funding orphans to look good in the public eye. One of these orphans would grow up to repay Kuroda by becoming a Dirty Cop on his payroll, while another repaid Kuroda with 100 million yen for supporting him in his childhood. After Kuroda finds out that his boss's missing daughter was murdered and Yano helped dispose of the body, Kuroda decides to safely retire from his life of crime while his loyal subordinates take the fall for most of the crimes he ordered.
• Ouran High School Host Club: Kyouya Ootori, the "Shadow King" is the vice-president, accountant, and resident schemer for the Ouran High School Host Club. Characterized by his shady business tactics and questionable morals, he exercises his intelligence and ruthless edge by keeping the Host Club running, spotting swindlers, helping the Hosts win at various festivals, and making sure the Hosts stay in good standing. When new member Haruhi causes both the Hosts and customers distress through her reckless actions, Kyouya uses fear tactics to fix the issue. In another instance, Kyouya uses his connections to find and reunite Tamaki and his mother. In his biggest display of audacity and brilliance, he uses his own accrued wealth to buy out his father's company only to give it back to him to show his worth, despite his position.
• Outlaw Star (1998 anime):
  • "Hot Ice" Hilda is a notorious outlaw hunted by the Kei Pirates for stealing their prototype XGP ship. Hiding on Sentinel III, Hilda tricks Gene Starwind and Jim Hawkins into guarding her as she accesses the XGP and its bio android guide Melfina. Seemingly killing Gene after he leads her to Melfina, when he survives to hold her at gunpoint, Hilda calmly cuts a deal with him and Jim and escapes the Kei Pirates. Later hunted to an outlaw colony, Hilda outplays and kills nearly all her foes, even sacrificing herself to kill the Kei Pirate's leader and save the others.
  • "The Seven Emerge": The Anten Seven assassin "Shimi", real name Leilong, challenges Gene to a duel, dressing his pupil as himself to draw Gene's fire before he personally attacks. Nearly killing Gene, Shimi then knocks out Gene's entire crew when they come to face him before seemingly dying with his pistol malfunctioning, actually using the opportunity to retire and roam the galaxy.
• PandoraHearts: In a dark world with a complex plot involving many master manipulators, the Big Bad Ensemble manage to stand out:
  • Glen Baskerville, real name Oswald, is the mysterious leader of the Baskerville family. Having ordered the slaughter of the population of Sablier to spare them the horrifying fate within the Abyss centuries in the past, Glen returns in the present time by taking over the body of his reincarnation and assumes direct leadership over the Baskerville clan once again. Able to force skilled schemers like Rufus Barma and Jack Vessalius to the limits of their wits, Glen ultimately almost attains his goal of altering the timeline by killing his own sister to prevent the events of the series from occurring, only stopping when he realizes his own hypocrisies and hollowness of his goals hidden behind good intentions.
  • Jack Vessalius is the true mastermind behind the events of the work. The illegitimate son of a noble, Jack fled from his home, living on the streets until he met a girl from the Baskerville family. Wanting to meet her again, Jack uses his noble family's name to be able to see her. When the Baskerville girl was sacrificed to the Abyss, Jack obsesses over seeing her again, deciding to throw the whole world into the corrupted Abyss to bring it to her. Causing the catastrophic Tragedy of Sablier, Jack blames the Baskerville and Nightray families while painting himself as the hero, going on to seek a chance to recreate it. Manipulating Oz's entire life to fulfill what Jack believes is the wish of his beloved, he is an ultimately Tragic Villain, even finally redeeming himself after accepting the errors of his own acts.
• PaRappa the Rapper:
  • "Droopy": Domonjo is a sapient flower who forms a bond with Sunny Funny after the latter saves his life. Wanting to help Sunny, Domonjo informs her of a plot by Gaster and Groober to plant bronze statues of themselves in PaRappa Town, and subsequently releases a pollen on the male characters that makes them blindly loyal to Sunny. When this inadvertently leads to Gaster's truck becoming a runaway, Domonjo stops it by having it crash into him, taking a fatal blow in the process. Realizing at last how much Sunny cares about Dorothy's wilted flowers, Domonjo revives them with the last of his strength, and even in death leaves behind his seeds so Sunny can see him again someday.
  • "It's PJ and His Friends!": MC King Kong Mushi is the bombastic president of Building Records who has PJ Berri sign a contract to become a worldwide sensation. Mushi abides strictly by his contract, apathetically leaves PJ's friends in the dust and PJ himself without motivation, and outwits the gang with things such as a giant blimp and spare circuits when they try to get him back. It is only when PJ's annoying footsteps become known that Mushi fires him, citing the contract once again.
• Parasyte: The parasite who would eventually take the name "Reiko Tamura" is the most scientifically-inclined and philosophical of her race. Finding safety for her fellow parasites in rallying them together under the parasite-sympathizing politician Takeshi Hirokawa, Tamura also invents the immensely powerful parasite "Gotou" through experimentation. Proving her ingenuity when she is attacked by three rival parasites, Tamura feigns madness to throw them off before easily dispatching her enemies. Taking interest in the unique bond of Shinichi Izumi and his parasite Migi, Tamura eventually tells the two of her hope for humanity and parasites to coexist before she allows herself to be gunned down by the police, shielding and then passing off to Shinchi the only thing she ever really loved: her human child.
• Plunderer: The original Schmelman Bach is the secret founder of Althia and its dystopian Count system, which he created to measure military recruits before the apocalyptic Abandoned War. Introducing himself as an apparent sadist, Schmelman shows himself to be a kind leader focused on helping every student, eventually adopting Rihito as his son after a heartfelt conversation. Deciding to turn Rihito into a Red Baron despite knowing the dangers, Schmelman uses Rihito's empathy to convince him to kill entire armies while turning other students from the Special Military School #13 into Red Barons to do missions that Rihito refuses. Winning the Abandoned War, Schmelman uses the reunited alien Ballots to create a floating new country and steal the resources of Earth to create a False Utopia where the Althians live in prosperity at the risk of being exiled to "the Abyss"—where the unchosen humans live in perpetual famine—including Schemelman's students who were exiled because their potential danger. 300 years later, Schmelman creates crops able to survive in the Abyss and begs Rihito and his students to kill him to reconcile Althia and the Abyss, expressing disgust towards his past mindset and considering himself "The enemy of humanity".
• Pluto:
  • Dr. Roosevelt is an advanced supercomputer who, though isolated in the body of a stuffed teddy bear, masterminds a massive portion of the plot. Serving as the personal advisor to the President of Thracia, Roosevelt uses the President as his puppet to do his bidding, notably starting a war with the only country to threaten Thracia in robotics, Persia. Having Persia decimated so as to make Thracia the undisputed strongest country in the world, Roosevelt showcases his adaptability as he then assists the revenge-seeking Abullah in his plans to destroy the world's strongest robots. Fully endorsing Abullah's plans to detonate a bomb underneath Thracia, Roosevelt reveals how he has played everyone in the hopes of the bomb triggering a chain reaction that will wipe out 90% of all human life, and leave robots to reign supreme over human life. Even as he faces death, Roosevelt simply remarks it's a "shame" that his plot failed, as it could have meant paradise for himself and fellow robots.
  • The most powerful AI in the world, Goji, at first couldn't even operate thanks to the flood of information it had to deal with, but upon latching onto the personality and memories of Dr. Abullah, Goji reformats itself into a perfect mimicry of the man, including his desire for revenge following the death of his family in the Thracia-Persia war. Believing himself to be the actual "Dr. Abullah", Goji turns Abullah's robot son Sahad into the monstrous killing machine Pluto, using him to destroy the seven strongest robots in the world while Goji himself eliminates members of the Bora Investigation Squad to silence the information they possess on his plans. Displaying honor as he follows through on promises he makes, and even showing immense respect and empathy for his opponents' personal tragedies, Goji simultaneously never hesitates to use his enemies' emotional attachments to entrap them. Goji's ultimate plan is to destroy Thracia by sacrificing himself, determined to make each and every Thracian pay for the suffering their country caused Abullah in his life.
• Princess Candle: Crown Prince Ruhl'ks initially appears to be a puppet controlled by his mother, the wicked Queen, but turns out to have masterminded the plot to destroy his political enemies. In order to secure his ascension to the throne, he has the Queen banish his half-sister, Princess Skw'ah, to the St. Ylieu convent to use her as bait for Lord Swey and Marquis Miph, who want to marry her to become king. Also sending the knight Flora to protect her and sending Yajenka as a spy, Ruhl'ks sits back while Flora and Yajenka defeat his enemies, eventually sending troops to aid them. Pretending to be a naive child to gain the trust of his mother, once he is sure Swey and Miph will be destroyed, he has her removed from power and sent to a villa he built to retire, successfully eliminating all threats to his coronation and ensuring his beloved sister will be safe.
• Princess Resurrection: Silvia von Phoenix, the ultimate Big Bad is described by her youngest sister Sherwood as a "natural born swindler". Hellbent on winning the Royal battle, Silvia plays her own siblings endlessly, having spent her sister Hime's childhood toying with and testing her for fun and to strengthen her. Using her brilliance to stay a step ahead of her siblings and eliminating her strongest brother Emile by making him her enslaved Blood Warrior, Silvia defeats and absorbs their eldest brother Fuhito to gain his power before attempting to defeat Hime and claim victory for herself, with one Bad Future having her utterly victorious.
• The Promised Neverland:
  • Isabella was once a child raised in the Farm system, chosen to become a "Mama" to raise other children to be fed to the demons. Upon realizing that some of her charges have learned the truth, Isabella requests a helper in Sister Krone, before constantly outplaying the children and foiling their plans. Setting up Krone to take the fall and eliminating her when she proves too ambitious, Isabella initially defeats the kids, but manages to secure the life of Norman by giving him to a secret group. Gracefully acknowledging her later defeat, Isabella is put in charge of all other Mamas and eventually inspires them to rebel against the Farm system, overcoming and defeating their oppressors to seize the future.
  • Archduke Leuvis is a demon who lives for the thrill of combat. Latching on to Emma as his worthy adversary, Leuvis shows himself to be fully willing to offer up his own weaknesses and to arm his opponents to equal the playing field and once his comrades are dead, engages Emma and her friends with a shockingly display of combat instinct and battle tactics, completely seeing through everything Emma's team does while countering until he is finally cornered. Even upon dealing Emma a seemingly fatal wound, Leuvis is courteous and respectful to her, thinking how much he loves humans for their ingenuity, unlike his fellow demons who consider them lesser beings and only fit for food. Returning from the dead, Leuvis manages to diffuse the rage of the demon populace, helping to end the oppressive system and place Mujika on the throne. A demon of shocking charm and charisma, Leuvis proves why he is the most deadly adversary yet encountered by Emma and her friends.
• Psycho-Pass:
  • Season 1:
    • Shogo Makishima is a Serial Killer obsessed with the inner darkness of human nature. Swaying others into becoming killers themselves to help damage and tear apart the current society, Makishima then eliminates them when they disappoint him or serve their purpose, and begins cultivating inspector Shinya Kogami as his chosen nemesis as he schemes to destroy the oppressive Sibyl System. Forming multiple plans to tear the system down, it is revealed Sibyl in fact wants Makishima to join its Hive Mind, which he lethally rejects by murdering their emissary, declaring that his loyalty is to his own individuality and he will keep playing his games by his own will. Even after all his forces are beaten, Makishima sets out on a lone wolf attack, nearly bringing all of Japan to its knees by destroying the centralized food plant. Cultured, charming, manipulative and ruthless beyond measure, Makishima will stop at nothing to impose his vision of freedom upon Japan and revel in the resulting chaos.
    • Choe Gu-sung is a Korean war survivor and Shogo Makishima's best friend and intellectual equal. Acting as liaison between Makishima and their clients, Choe provides them the resources to commit crime in the Sibyl System's "perfect" Japan as part of the revolution the duo seek. Also a genius programmer, Choe uses his abilities to distract the entire nation's security forces while he and Makishima deduce the location of and assault the building housing Sibyl's mainframe. Hacking through all its defenses and using his words to distract the Enforcer tailing him, Choe comes moments to exposing the undetectable criminal brains used to run Sibyl to the world and his death motivates Makishima to carry on their goal.
  • Season 2: Kirito Kamui was surgically made into a collective being as a child after he alone survived a plane crash indirectly caused by a precursor to the Sibyl System and now seeks its betterment for humanity. A master psychotherapist, Kamui gets his followers' crime coefficients below judgeable levels, making them all the more threatening. Engineering a series of daring attacks, Kamui surmises the physical location of the Sibyl System and forces it to remove a number of corrupted brains from itself so that it can judge his collective mind, dying satisfied with the impact he made.
• Puella Magi Oriko Magica: White Magical Girl Oriko Mikuni uses a series of manipulations and distractions in order to murder Madoka Kaname to prevent her from inevitably becoming the witch Kriemhild Gretchen and destroying the world. Using the Black Magical Girl Kirika Kure to keep the heroines and even the cunning Kyubey busy, Oriko personally proves a match for the time-travelling Homura Akemi and manages to kill Madoka in one timeline while faking an attack at Kyubey. Wracked with guilt by what she must do, Oriko nevertheless stops at nothing, determined to save the world while outplaying everyone around her.
• Ranma ½: Cologne is a wise and cunning martial arts grandmaster from a Chinese Amazonian village and the great-grandmother of Shampoo. Wishing Ranma to be betrothed to Shampoo, she assists in manipulating Ranma into accepting marriage using various schemes. Subjecting Ranma to a Pressure Point that rendered his skin sensitive to hot temperatures, this made Ranma be stuck as a girl, while Cologne continuously thwarts Ranma's attempts to snatch the cure. However, Cologne does give Ranma a chance by showing a technique Ranma would need to learn to have a chance of succeeding. Ranma ends up challenging Cologne to a fight and is overwhelmed by Cologne's Shark Fist, but instead unleashes the Cat Fist, giving Cologne the hardest fight in decades and gives Ranma the cure as a prize for such a fighting spirit. Cologne later becomes a sometimes ally and trains Ranma and his friends in many techniques, but is not above more schemes to wrap Ranma into marriage such as using the "Reversal Jewel" that causes Shampoo to hate Ranma, and make him jealously try to win her back.
• Ranpo Kitan: Game of Laplace: The original Twenty-Faces, Namikoshi, pioneered the Serial-Killer Killer phenomenon after he spent his childhood bullied by his classmates and abused by his parents, before making friends with the brilliant Kogoro Akechi, together creating the "Dark Star" formula. Accelerating the coding of the formula as the abuse he suffered worsened, the Dark Star was set to murder both his abusers and those in society who take advantage of their power. When Akechi realizes their formula is lethally unstable, Twenty-Faces fakes his own death, then teams up with a medical examiner who works with Akechi to avenge the death of her brother. Kidnapping Akechi's assistant, Twenty-Faces takes him and ten children to the top of a clock-tower, planning to murder them all by having them jump in five-minute intervals. While he may be ruthlessly unfettered in his goals, Twenty-Faces truly believes his doings will be what creates a just and fair society.
• Ratman: Shin Akeboshi is the son of Shiningman—the first superhero—and was experimented on by Shiningman's enemies after his death to replicate the S Gene, turning Shin into "Sin". Having developed a hatred for heroes as a concept, Shin works with those same criminals to destroy the Hero Agency, starting a career as the hero IS-KA to sell phones that contain a power amplifier that would drive many heroes to a violent rage, with his plan only failing only thanks to the geniuses at JACKAL and other heroes. Shin discovers that Ratman has the S Gene too, and tries to convince Ratman while Shin's allies launch a terrorist attack on the Hero Agency Headquarters. When his offer is rejected, Sin takes advantage of the nature of the S Gene and attempts to murder Ratman's girlfriend to enrage Ratman and turn him into a monster that threatens to kill all heroes, while Sin kills his former allies. Escaping after his defeat at the hands of a recovered Ratman, Shin is able to see a confirmation of Shiningman's ideals of heroism, which makes Shin retire from villainy to honor his father's memory.
• Record of Lodoss War:
  • Karla, the Grey Witch, was the only survivor of an ancient magic civilization who implanted her consciousness into an enchanted circlet that possesses whoever kills her host body Seeking to prevent one side from ever growing too powerful, Karla has manipulated almost every war in Lodoss's history to bring about the ruin of any nation that may grow too powerful, even secretly fighting as one of the Six Heroes to stop the Demon God from destroying the world years ago. In present, Karla serves as the adviser to Emperor Beld of Marmo, guiding his nation to the top, ending with Beld slaying the Emperor Fahn of Valis- only for Karla to intervene and cause Beld's death herself to decapitate Valis and Marmo alike. Constantly escaping death, Karla stops at nothing to ensure Lodoss's balance remains as she wills it, no matter what she has to do.
  • Ashram, the Black Knight of Marmo, is seen by many as Marmo's true ruler and the heir to Beld himself. Once a young man fighting a war against the Thieves' Guild who allied with Beld, Ashram helped Beld to unify all of Marmo while vowing to one day surpass the emperor. Enraged at Beld's death, Ashram takes his demonic sword, the Soul Crusher and masters it, destroying the ancient dragons of Lodoss to find the Scepter of Domination and control the world. While seemingly dying, Ashram returns to depose the corrupt governor Rabido and manipulates him to his death, taking over all Marmo himself with his lover, the dark elf Pirotess at his side. Seeking to create a new home for the people of Marmo, Ashram ends up achieving all he sets out to do before departing Lodoss for a new home.
• Record of Ragnarok: Hades is the brilliant God of the Dead and the eldest of the Greek brothers. Deciding to replace Buddha in the tournament to avenge Posedion's death, he fights Qin Shi Huang in Round 7. Faced with a counter to his own skillset, Hades makes up for his disadvantage with sheer tactical genius. Deducing that Qin's Heavenly Hand of Defense could simply be overpowered and covering himself in his own blood to feel when the invisible Tortoise Ripple hit him, figuring out that by changing his attack trajectory he could render Tortoise Ripple useless, he puts his foe on the defensive several times. Using his trump card of empowering his Bident with his own blood, he takes Qin's arm and would have won if the First King did not get a last-second Revolund. Hades accepted his death happy to have faced a true king, and apologizes to his brothers for not being strong enough. One of the few Gods to respect their foe from the beginning despite his anger over his brother's death and connecting with Qin over the duty of a King, Qin's only words for his foe after the end of the fight are "my friend".
• Robotech: Khyron is a bold young commander of the Zentraedi force, known for his brilliance and daring even as his lack of regard for the lives of allies has earned him the name "The Backstabber". Setting off a series of brilliant campaigns against the SDF forces, Khyron proves to be a tactical genius who also harbors greater ambition, utilizing the human forces to turn on and eliminate the Zentraedi supreme commander before launching his own guerilla war, even admitting his time on earth has taught him about human feeling and love for his partner Azonia. In his final battle with the SDF, Khyron opts to sacrifice himself in a final suicide attack with his flagship to ram the SDF when all else seems lost, last seen holding Azonia's hand as the two glory in their final triumph.
• Ronin Warriors: Anubis Dohji, youngest and leader of the Dynasty's four warlords, was once a brilliant young warrior seduced by the promises of Lord Talpa. Becoming the Warlord of Cruelty, Anubis immediately centers in on the Ronin leader Ryo Sanada with numerous plans and schemes to lure him into an honorable duel. Easily proving himself a match for the entire Ronin force himself at times, Anubis also remained ahead of the other Warlords who coveted his position. Upon realizing the depths of Talpa's evil, Anubis takes back his destiny and becomes the successor to the heroic Ancient One, helping to plot the downfall of the Dynasty and guiding the Ronins to defeat Talpa. Upon encountering Kayura, last of the Ancient One's clan and possessed by Talpa's evil, Anubis dons the Armor of Cruelty once more to face her, expelling Talpa's right hand Badamon from her at cost of a fatal wound and securing her redemption and ultimate salvation of the world at the cost of his own life.
• Rookie Policewoman Kiruko-san: Seemingly respectable business director Jean Smith is really a powerful criminal trying to expand his operation by using the small town of Nagashima for smuggling. Knowing heroine Kiruko and her allies are infiltrating his cruise ship to capture him, Jean has his men prepare for the attack while he personally greets the police in a jovial and personable manner. Ordering his men to take Kiruko's senior officer hostage, Jean escapes the cruise ship along with his hostage before trying to sink the boat. Eventually captured by the police, Jean nevertheless remains cordial to the cops and calls a rescue jet as a backup plan to escape. Genuinely friendly to both his enemies and allies, Jean remains the suavest criminal Kiruko has faced.
• Rosario + Vampire:
  • Tenmei Mikogami, Headmaster of Yokai Academy, is the charismatic architect of the events of the series. Tenmei clashes with the terrorist organization Fairy Tale, seeking Alucard's revival and manipulates Tsukune Aono into being enrolled into the academy and helps to transform the kind-hearted boy into his powerful successor. Tenmei secretly orchestrates the transformation of vampire blood in Tsukune to instead have it turn him into the all-powerful Shinsho Vampire so Tsukune can eventually defeat Fairy Tale. In the meantime, he puts the members of the Newspaper Club through harsh and sometimes deadly training to make them far more powerful. When Alucard begins an attack on the city, Tenmei reveals to him that he predicted where Alucard would head and evacuated the city to prevent collateral damage, and later holds off Alucard while Tsukune powers up. At the end of his life, Tenmei sacrifices himself and his allies to destroy Alucard and leaves the academy to Tsukune as a worthy successor.
  • Alucard is the true Big Bad of the series, using multiple aliases to achieve his goals. As the Masked King, Alucard formed the Miao Triad family, bidding the evil vampire Gyokuro Shuzen to form the anti-human terrorist organization Fairy Tale while also joining it under the secret name of Miyabi Fujisaki. Manipulating the heroes into a confrontation with Gyokuro and her squadron leaders, Alucard reveals himself only after the fighting to hijack her plans and awaken his true body, easily overcoming the other heroes and setting to attack the human world. Upon his final destruction, it is revealed that Alucard's full intention was to make himself the villain and create a group that had to be opposed by an alliance of humans and monsters, exposing the monster world to humankind, even making provisions to ensure his final subordinates survived the fight.
  • Hokuto Kaneshiro was once a human who left an abusive father to attend Yokai Academy. Finding only pain and suffering until he met Kiria Yoshii, Hokuto resolves to tear down the barrier between worlds and expose monsters to humanity. Playing at being Tsukune's friend, Hokuto reveals he is truly the leader of the rebellious group Anti-Thesis, letting himself be defeated so he will be placed in front of the headmaster in order to attempt an assassination attempt and steal a rosary to destroy the barrier. The only reason his plan fails is Hokuto deciding at the last moment to assist Tsukune instead. Even in part 2, Hokuto returns to help manipulate the end of Fairy Tale, aiding Tsukune one last time against even Kiria.
  • Kiria Yoshii is the right-hand Yokai of Hokuto Kaneshiro. Conducting the affairs of their organization, Kiria happily sets up schemes to test Moka and her friends, all to get the cheerful joy of combat and to see what happens next. Merrily bringing Hokuto's plans to fruition, Kiria is later revealed as a mole for Fairy Tale, even manipulating Gyokuro Shuzen in service to his true allegiance: Alucard. Upon Alucard's defeat, unable to forgive humanity and Tsukune, Kiria takes over Fairy Tale to become a great foe to Tsukune and friends later in life.
• Rurouni Kenshin: Makoto Shishio was once the feared Hitokiri of the Shadows during the Bakumatsu. Betrayed by the government and left for dead, Shishio survived and by virtue of his overwhelming power and charisma creates the Ten Swords, a powerful organization consisting of loyal soldiers he effortlessly manipulates, with one even ostensibly wanting revenge against Shishio for blinding him, unaware Shishio is knows he has lost all hope of vengeance and is just manipulating him by using his pride. Shishio then sets up a complex plan to burn Tokyo, only for it to be revealed this is a ruse as he attacks Kyoto instead. Despite being foiled, Shishio proceeds to have the heroes fight his men in single matches, all for the purposes of weakening or eliminating them before they face Shishio himself while he gains greater understanding of their abilities through the fights. Even after his defeat and death, Shishio shows no sign of complaint and instantly sets off with his deceased lover and most loyal follower to begin conquering Hell itself.
• RWBY: The Official Manga: This version of Cinder Fall, lacking her series counterpart's sadism or childishness, is a beautiful and enigmatic villainess who wields a grudge on Vale's Headmaster Ozpin. She comes up with a scheme to destroy the kingdom of Vale, using abandoned railroads to launch the attack on the capital, and the resulting negativity keeps Grimm coming. She has the vile Roman Torchwick do the dirty work and steal Dust for the operation while she infiltrates Beacon Academy. As a skilled fighter, she is able to break into the Cross Continental Transmit System tower and implant an important virus, and is able to escape even after being caught by Ruby Rose.

S - V

• Sailor Moon: Germatoid is the enigmatic and affable yet vile acting leader of the Death Busters. Taking advantage of a tragic lab accident, he makes a deal with Professor Souichi Tomoe to save his daughter, Hotaru Tomoe's, life, possessing the man's body in doing so. He then implants Mistress 9 within Hotaru and pretends to be the Souichi for years, sending the Witches 5 and Kaolinite to further the goals of their superior Pharaoh 90. Treating his subordinates with nothing but kindness and even encouraging them to do better upon failures, he eventually succeeds in awakening Mistress 9, who successfully summons Pharaoh 90 so that Germatoid can attempt to destroy Earth as planned. Even as he perishes, he smiled as he has attained exactly what he wanted.
• Saint Seiya:
  • Gemini Saga is a man who had wrested with the evil in his heart his whole life. After murdering the Pope and taking his place, Saga frames the pure-hearted Gold Saint Sagittarius Aiolos for his attempted murder of baby Athena and has him mortally wounded, ruling Sanctuary for thirteen years with almost nobody the wiser. Having his forces close in on Athena, Saga later recovers his goodness and ends his own life to atone for his misdeeds. Later revived by Hades, Saga turns out to deceive Hades the whole time to free Athena from mortal constraints and gives his life to help Seiya and the other Saints.
  • Virgo Shaka is known as the Man Closest to God. A living Buddha, Shaka is known as perhaps the mightiest Gold Saint and one of the craftiest. Effortlessly outplaying Leo Aiolia, Shaka controls his mind to send him to fight the Bronze Saints and later faces Phoenix Ikki as a skillful fighter. When the revived Gold Saints come to Sanctuary, Shaka effortlessly defeats Hades' Spectres and then allows his own end at the hands of the revived Saga, Shura and Camus to send his soul to aid Athena to the end.
  • Capricorn Shura is one of Saga's Co-Dragons, helping to keep control of Sanctuary and directing their forces for total control despite known Saga is an imposter. Having lost faith in humanity, Shura reveals himself as a dangerous and skilled killer who faces Dragon Shiryu, finally overwhelmed as Shiryu prepares to sacrifice himself. Recovering his ideals, Shura gives his own life to preserve Shiryu's, later returning as part of Saga's conspiracy to help Athena and participates in the final sacrifice to assist the Bronze Saints.
  • Sea Dragon Kanon is the twin brother of Saga, the leader of Poseidon's Mariners who helped to awaken Poseidon to manipulate him and the Mariners in flooding the world. Using them as his secret army to help pave his own road to world domination, Kanon later repents and inherits his brother's mantle as "Gemini" Kanon, ultimately proving an invaluable ally who infiltrates the underworld to help stop Hades and dies a loyal Saint of Athena in a suicide attack against one of Hades' top minions.
  • Wyvern Rhadamanthys is perhaps the most powerful of Hades three Judges of the Underworld. Distrusting the revived Gold Saints, Rhadamanthys sends a secret force of Spectres to attack Sanctuary behind his superior Pandora's back and lures three Gold Saints to a trap where their powers are reduced so he can easily defeat them. When the Bronze Saints team up with the supposed defector Lyre Orphee, Rhadamanthys is the only one to block his binding music and deals him a fatal blow. Forming an enmity with Kanon, Rhadamanthys is able to even go head to head with the Gold Saint, showcasing himself as one of the mightiest and most intelligent generals in all of Hades' army.
• Samurai Champloo: In this episodic adventure with a colorful cast of characters, some opponents stand above for their grace and ingenuity.
  • Kagetoki Kariya is a master swordsman and wise old man, his skills renowned so much that he is known as the "Hand of God". A dignified and intelligent samurai, Kariya realized that the world was changing and allied with the shogunate, allowing the shogunate to believe he is a puppet when reality, he is using the empire to further his own agendas. Tending his garden while making comparisons to life and defeating Mugen in combat with the same amount of exertion, Kariya fights Jin and defeats even him, giving pointers on his fighting style the entire time. Ordered to eliminate the legendary "Samurai who Smells of Sunflowers", Kariya uses Fuu to lead him to the Samurai, kills the man after offering him last words with his daughter Fuu, spares the Samurai's elderly caretaker and then tries to kill Fuu as well, offering her the chance to honorably take her own life in the process.
  • "Redeye Reprisal": The samurai Inuyama aids the vile Ryujiro in his quest for revenge, playing the role of a meek coward to deflect suspicion from villagers and the heroes. Luring Jin into a secluded forest, Inuyama engages him in combat, showing both remarkable ingenuity as well as respect for his opponent and after seeing the death of his employer, gracefully exits with no qualms, merely commenting he hopes to battle Jin again someday.
  • "Beatbox Bandits": Yamane "the Ogre" is the bespectacled, unassuming right-hand man to Kinogasa, serving as the real brains behind the Hakone checkpoint. Giving Kinosaga sound advice all while sitting back and letting the man's corruption run rampant, Yamane concocts a brilliant scheme to turn Mugen into a delivery boy of an important package in exchange for sparing his hostage friends. Following closely behind Mugen with stealth and agility, and staging a sneaky breakout when the two are temporarily captured, Yamane ends up laughing off his differences with Mugen and enemy priests after all of them get high off burning marijuana fields. Yamane then goes on to orchestrate himself into the leadership role at Hakone, where he reigns for 30 years before quietly and successfully retiring, recalling with fondness the adventure he went on with Mugen.
  • "Bogus Booty": Yatsuha is a police officer investigating a counterfeiting operation, having gone undercover as a prostitute for the past year. Using Mugen's attraction to her advantage, Yatsuha has him take a room with her next to the criminal conspirators to catch the full scope of their plan. Nearly killing Mugen when he becomes a nuisance, Yatsuha is instead impressed by his fighting abilities and falsely promises him sexual favors to have him help her battle and arrest the whole gang.
• Samurai 7: Kyuzo is the former bodyguard of Ayamaro who located Kanbei and his party alone and fought Kanbei in a duel, with Kanbei being impressed by Kyuzo's cunning and skill to where he even admits defeat. Despite this, Kanbei makes it clear he has no intention of dying just yet and states that they can fight to the death at a later time. Rather than kill Kanbei right there, Kyuzo chooses to accept Kanbei's request for a future rematch on account of having enjoyed the fight himself. Wanting to ensure he is the one who kills Kanbei, he eventually joins the party as sixth samurai where he frequently goes on scouting missions to deal with any potential threats. Even after he is accidentally killed by Katsushiro, he holds no contempt toward his fellow samurai for the accident and instead just has a mutual promise with Kanbei that they would finish their fight in the afterlife.
• Sayuri, by Rensuke Oshikiri: "Grandma" Kamiki vows to protect her grandson Norio after the family's curse leaves them the only two survivors. Snapping out of senility, Grandma uncovers the corpse of Sayuri and learns the girl's spirit has cursed the home she was buried in after her own family murdered the abusive Sayuri. Torturing confessions out of Sayuri's family, Grandma and the spirits of her own dead family force Sayuri's ghost to admit her own cruelty drove her family to kill her, leaving Sayuri to be taken to the afterlife for punishment.
• Senran Kagura (2013 anime): Lady Fubuki is the main antagonist of the Shinovi Master season. A Half-Human Hybrid born to a human shinobi father and yōma mother, Fubiki swore revenge when the shinobi took her family away from her. Taken in by the yōma Rasetsu and Gessen Master Kurokage, Fubuki bonded with them and Yumi, eventually recruiting Rasetsu to her cause. Manipulating the the siblings Gekko and Senko by turning them against the other schools, Fubuki has them kidnap the Hanzo girls, sans Asuka, and use them to force the others into the Shinovi Masters tournament. While Rasetsu guards the captives, Fubuki reveals her true plans at the tournament's conclusion and launches a yōma invasion, intending to kill all shinobi. Sending her minions to surface in a faraway island to divert the top shinobi, Fubuki defeats even the powerful True Kagura and corners the other heroines several times, nearly reaching her goal. Though defeated in the end, Fubuki accepts her loss and gives up on her hatred, befriending Asuka and rekindling her relationship with Yumi.
• The Seven Deadly Sins:
  • Merlin, the Boar's Sin of Gluttony, is the second-eldest of the Sins, a sorceress from the land of Belialuin and the last survivor after she fooled the Demon King and Supreme Goddess into granting her their blessings. Achieving immortality, Merlin became aware of the creator entity Chaos and sought to revive it, knowing she would need to destroy the Demon King or Supreme Goddess. Guiding Meliodas in forming the Seven Sins, Merlin sent him away upon the emergence of the demon Fraudrin and guided the young knight Arthur against the Holy Knights. Manipulating the Sins through the Holy War to destroy the Demon King and revive Chaos in Arthur, Merlin dedicates herself to guiding Arthur to craft a new kingdom of men, also accepting the feelings of the Lion's Sin of Pride, Escanor, by kissing him as he burns to ash to bear the scars of his existence forever.
  • Gowther of Selflessness is an extremely powerful demon and brilliant artificer who is a member of the Ten Commandments. The creator of the younger Gowther, the automaton who would one day be the Sin of Lust, and mentor to Fraudrin, Gowther is one of the most compassionate of the high-ranking demons, and hatches a brilliant plan to end the Holy War between the Five Races with minimal bloodshed. Knowing that the war is heavily imbalanced in favor of the Goddess Clan's alliance due to Meliodas' defection, Gowther uses his power over the mind to rewrite the memories of the world's entire population to cause the Goddess' strongest warrior, the Archangel Mael, to defect to the demons under the new identity of Estarossa. With the war now at a deadlock, the angels sealed themselves and the demons away, sparing the world further devastation, and the elder Gowther died content with his gambit a success and his son ready to carry on his mission.
  • Fraudrin of the Ten Commandments is a brilliant manipulator in the Demon Clan. Possessing the Holy Knight Dreyfus, Fraudrin masterminds the framing of the Seven Deadly Sins to oust them from Britannia before working to revive his brethren. Succeeding, Fraudrin and the other Commandments set forth to conquer Britannia, nearly triumphing and even when bested in combat Fraudrin prepares a suicide attack to take the kingdom with him, relenting only out of love for Dreyfus' son.
• Seven Mortal Sins: Lucifer, Fallen Angel turned Demon Lord of Pride, can achieve anything she sets her mind to. Deciding to take over hell, Lucifer has a policy of challenging the Demon Lords known as the Mortal Sins at their own games on their own turf, constantly getting the better of them and winning no matter what venue they choose, constantly coming up with new plans and strategies. It is later revealed that for all her haughtiness and deep pride in herself, Lucifer was the only angel to object to God's plan to wipe out hell and the earth, having been protecting humanity from the start, and manages to get the better of both her arch-rivals, the demon lord Belial and the new leader of the Seven Lively Virtues, her old partner Michael via a few clever gambits, culminating in Lucifer embracing her love for her human companion Maria and claiming her rightful throne as the ruler of hell and queen of pride itself.
• Shadows House: The gallant Maryrose is one-half of the Robe, the hooded figure conspiring against Shadow House. As one of the few who knew the true nature of the Shadow House's, she plans to escape after learning they plan to force her and her Living Doll Rosemary to unify at the expense of Rosemary's life. Working with Anthony, Maryrose makes Soot attack to delay the Unification to find an exit, deciding to damage the home as much as possible when finding escape is impossible, masterminding the Phantom attack to destroy the coffee that brainwashes the Living Dolls and frame the Belle twins. When Kate figures out, Maryrose decides to test her, to see if she can lead the rebellion in her stead through lessons in the fight, before working with her after her capture in a final Phantom attack to sough chaos in the Adult Building and kill Edward, defiantly jumping with Rosemary to either their doom or escape after ruining Edward's standing, having set the stage for Kate and her companions to defeat the Shadow House's machiavellic system.
• Shaman King: Hao Asakura was once a shaman in heian-era Japan where he lost his beloved mother at the prejudices of humanity. Manipulating future events and even his own reincarnations to empower himself, Hao is reborn again in modern times as the twin brother of hero Yoh Asakura. Absurdly powerful and intelligent, Hao remains a step ahead of the heroes, defeating all challengers and enemies in an attempt to become the Shaman King and destroy humanity. At the end, Hao succeeds in his goal, becoming Shaman King, but proves open to reason and opts to watch the world for himself, being as brilliant a villain in victory as he was in the attempt to get there.
• Shiki: Dr. Toshio Ozaki is a brilliant doctor who deduces that the cause of the mysterious deaths of Sotoba village to be linked to the Shiki. Experimenting on his vampirized wife to learn of their weaknesses, which results in her death, Ozaki schemes to expose the Shiki by seducing one of them and revealing her status as a bloodsucking monster to the town, and rallying the villagers to hunt them down. While Ozaki ultimately failed in saving the village, he did succeed in saving the lives of its surviving people.
• Shimeji Simulation:
  • Big Sis is the older sister of Shijima Tsukishima, known for her intelligence but aloofness. Inventing technologies like the Raw Fish Generator, Twin-Flounder Motor, a giant excavator and a sea urchin-like device, Big Sis is nothing short of genius for her plans to uncover West Yomogi's true nature. She devises a plan to dismantle West Yomogi and alter it from the inside by sending her sister into the Dreamscape, which unlocks Big Sis the ability to dreamwalk, a plan that would become essential before her confrontation with the Gardener as she uncovers the real truth behind West Yomogi and the world within it being a "calculation". She is able to deduce the Gardener's involvement in imposing a stringent order within the simulation, as she took notice of the lack of accidents and deaths across the town, as well as the world being a simulated reality. Maintaining a calm and collected expression throughout the confrontation with the Gardener, Big Sis adds that anything about the world they are in is a "papier-mache" and no "mere Gardener" can stop her plan. She later outwitted the Gardener when she used the conch-shaped device to release the Fish With Names, leading to the town and the world being permanently altered to her specifications and with humanity having the unrestrained means of freedom. Despite the future consequences her actions ultimately caused, in the form of her clone, Big Sis (as a fish) ultimately atones for her actions before dying and tells Shijima to go back in time to reverse all of the damage.
  • The Big Sis Clone is the Evil Doppelgänger of Big Sis, created from the prime's accidental discovery of humanity's boundaries in the Rock World. She initiates her plans to spread the Key and its powers to humanity by cleverly manipulating the Mosasa Dogs, who tells them that they can become music in the first place, and use their concert as a broadcast signal. By using their performance as a "resonance effect", the Sis clone notes at her prime how the Key is used to "unlock" people the ability to change oneself, not just by changing reality in a whim. Despite the prime Sis' attempts of restraining her clones, the Sis clone pulls off a calculated plan at the end when she managed to have the powers of the Key spread across the school festival audiences and subsequently the whole world with the concert. Her actions at the end, while it caused consequences to the already-damaged fabric of the simulation, mirrored her prime's goals of granting humanity unrestrained freedom from the clutches of the simulation's stringent natural order.
• Shin Mazinger: Baron Ashura is the right-hand of Dr. Hell. Created from the fused and preserved corpses of Mycenaean lovers Tristan and Isolde, Ashura acts the loyal servitor, engaging Mazinger multiple times and proving their strategic acumen by leading robotic monsters to attack Tokyo, constantly pushing Mazinger to the brink and even using a hostage gambit with Sayaka to force Kouji Kabuto's compliance. Finally allying with Kouji against Dr. Hell to secure Hell's destruction, Ashura reveals the reason was to resurrect the Mycenaean empire and caps their plan by ending their own life to unlock the seal and unleash Mycenae back upon the world.
• Shion no Ou: Hani Satoru, having lost his fiance in the infamous Shogi Murder Case, would do anything to find the killer, arranging a massive shogi tournament to lure them in and ruthlessly interrogating those connected to the case. As the man in charge, Satoru rigged the tournament to observe potential suspects to identify if they match the killer's profile. Setting his sights on the Sole Survivor of the murders, Shion Yakushiji, he aggressively confronts her to find out more information, going so far as to manipulate her loved ones and even trying to drive her into a mental breakdown. Realizing Shion's innocence and later figuring out the killer's identity from Shion, Satoru went to arrange the arrest, gathering the evidence even if it meant trespassing and letting Shion be near the dangerous killer, all so he could put an end to the murder once and for all and find peace in himself.
• Shut Hell: The Dreaded, ruthless Khan; Genghis Khan himself. Born Temujin, and branded with the Tangut letters on his back marking him as a slave forever, the Khan seeks to destroy the Tangut script and the people of western Xia to forever remove knowledge of the brand on his skin. Utterly dominating the Mongol tribes through his dark charisma and power, the Khan sweeps through Western Xia and Jin, devastating all in his path with his brilliance and strength. Ever quick to turn any disadvantage back to his side, the Khan even handles the death of his son and commander Tolui by enslaving the young prince Yurul and forcing him to take Tolui's identity. A man who rose from nothing to become the greatest warlord the world had ever seen, the Khan decides he will burn all in his path, no matter how much fire it takes.
• Slayers: Xellos the Trickster Priest is a Mazoku, and the most mysterious member of the cast. Hiding his true self behind a veil of smiles and pleasantries, Xellos ruthlessly manipulates protagonist Lina Inverse and friends into carrying out his wishes and destroying his enemies. Frequently arranging situations to benefit himself no matter what the outcome, Xellos helps destroy his Mistress, the Grand Beast Zelas Metallium's rivals and other Mazoku should it benefit him. Xellos tends to change his schemes on the fly as well, making it impossible to tell what was part of his plans from the start, even if he admits he feels some affection for Lina and her team. Xellos is so charming and affable, it's very easy to forget that he is a demonic being under his friendliness.
• Soul Eater: Death City and the world it resides in are both home to manipulative witches and power-seeking gods, but the ruthlessness and immense charisma these characters showcase puts them head and shoulders above the rest:
  • Lord Death/Shinigami is the leader of the Death Weapon Meister Academy (DWMA), founding and running the organization for the purpose of wiping out evil in the world. Recruiting hundreds of humans and Death Weapons alike to his cause, Death puts up the front of a silly goofball while truthfully masking a more vicious—but nonetheless noble—persona as he trains his students in taking on enemy forces. Death teams students in ideal groups to help them grow, sends them on successful missions tailored to their strengths, and keeps the DWMA afloat even amidst assaults by Medusa and Arachne Gorgon. When Kishin Asura escapes a prison designed by Death himself, Death instantly begins weeding out the monster's whereabouts, invading cities and forcing witches into assisting, before ultimately making a pact with the witches he's warred against for so long, realizing that Asura is the greater evil. A proud father to Death "the Kid" who willingly gives up his own life to help his son defeat Asura, a great leader to the DWMA, and a true friend to several characters, Lord Death's like-ability is only matched by his intelligent mind.
  • Dr. Franken Stein is the DWMA's most successful former student-turned-teacher, a diabolically sadistic scientist who controls his cruel urges by fighting alongside allies he genuinely cares about. Introduced to the story physically and verbally thrashing several DWMA students as part of a "test" of their abilities, Stein personally leads his students on several missions to train them further, and spends his free time deducing the identity of school doctor Medusa Gorgon as a scheming witch and working to end her plans. Destroying Medusa's physical form in combat through both skill and analysis, Stein is later framed for the murder of a fellow DWMA member, but he quickly flees into hiding, tracks down the true culprit, and exposes the attempted frame-up, clearing his name. During the final assault on Asura's moon lair, Stein brilliantly strategizes against and massacres swathes of enemy troops to the shock and awe of everyone around, all while maintaining his friendly disposition and care for his companions, even assisting in the final battle with Asura himself with great success.
  • The man known as "Mifune" and "God of the Sword" is a samurai and guardian of the young witch Angela Leon. Through sheer tactical acumen, Mifune takes down dozens of armed thugs and soldiers of the DWMA with his "Infinite One-Sword Style" technique. With Black*Star as his chosen Worthy Opponent, Mifune, through multiple clashes, teaches him to become a true warrior and through his own manipulations and deals, manages to ultimately secure protection for Angela within the DWMA, even at the expense of his own life.
  • The Index, aka the Table of Contents, is the guide of the Book of Eibon and the true mastermind behind the Noahs and their groups. The Index creates Noah from the Book of Eibon and uses him to infiltrate Arachne Gorgon's group, having him play the part of loyal servant before swooping in and stealing the powerful weapon BREW. When the DWMA Spartoi group enters the Book of Eibon to rescue an ally, the Index manipulates and strings them along, pretending to be a helpful presence but truthfully trying to orchestrate the group's destruction to prevent their interference in its own plans. Successfully evading suspicion as the mastermind behind Noah even after Noah's destruction, the Index simply creates another artificial construct of Noah, uses him to invade Asura's lair, and reveals its plans to absorb Asura into the Book of Eibon and use his power to spread vast knowledge and intelligence to all humankind, coming within seconds of completing his plans near-flawlessly before Crona interferes.
• Souten no Koumori: The Iron Demon ninjas' leader is a ruthless tactician tasked with assassinating the pre-teen Lord Chiyozuru by the boy's uncle. Carefully surveying Chiyozuru's manor, the leader advances his men until realizing his surrogate daughter and former deadliest ninja, heroine Henpekumaru, is aiding Chiyozuru, moving swiftly to personally engage her. Chastising Henpekumaru for her softness in leaving their clan, he nevertheless admits to his own tenderness towards her and foregoes killing her, even when doing so leaves him open to a fatal arrow barrage.
• Space Battleship Yamato: Albelt Dessler is the charming, sophisticated supreme ruler and dictator of Gamillas. Desiring a peace in the galaxy through ultimate control, Dessler has expanded the Gamillas empire but keeps new conquered races happy by allowing them to prove themselves equal citizens in the empire on pure merit. When earth proves more difficult to conquer, Dessler deals with the matter by assigning a failed commander to either give Dessler more knowledge of the earthlings' tactics, or removing an incompetent without him lifting a finger. Dessler also outplays any who attempt to usurp his authority and when defeated, he promptly reemerges to take the Yamato over to restore himself to glory, convinced that his success is the glory of Gamillas itself.
• Speed Grapher: Chōji Suitengu is a man who flaunts his extensive wealth via using expensive yen notes as cigars, believing everything "has its price", especially human life. In truth, Suitengu is dedicated to overthrowing the social order of Japan, manipulating all the upper echelons of society with his Roppongi Club that caters to a variety of fetishes. Constantly planning ahead of series hero Saiga, Suitengu also manipulates his lover, Shinzen of the powerful Tennozou Group and later disposes of her when she attempts to betray and kill him. Revealing his tragic past to his Arch-Enemy, Prime Minister Katsuji Kamiya, when the latter tries to kill Suitengu and take over the Roppongi Club, Suitengu kills him and enacts his master plan: causing a massive financial crisis to completely erase the corrupt upper class and completely break their hold on Japan forever.
• Spriggan's "The Forgotten Kingdom": Bowman was Yu Ominae's knife instructor before leaving ARCAM and joining the Trident Corporation. Tasked with retrieving an ancient Message Plate in Phantom Island and kill his former student, Bowman uses his Doppelgänger to hold Yoshino Somei hostage forcing Yu to hand over the Message Plate to him. Bowman then fights Yu before getting defeating after a grueling battle, admitting on how proud he is of Yu before embracing his death.
• Star Driver:
  • Reiji Miyabi aka Head, real name Tokio Tsunashi, leads the Vanishing Age faction of the Glittering Crux Brigade and serves as the group's de facto director. Reiji brought the Crux together in an effort to break all four seals on Southern Cross Isle. He befriends the North Maiden to coax her into allowing him to break her seal, and forms a strategy to both capture the West Maiden and finally defeat Tauburn, the Cybody driven by his son, Takuto. Even after defeat, Reiji initiates a coup that allows his faction to anex all others and grant him more power. Anticipating the betrayal of Keito Nichi, the East Maiden, Reiji is able to awaken a boy he'd seduced from his years long coma and be given his mark that enables his new Cybody to control all other Cybodies. In the final battle in Zero Time, Reiji reveals his goal to destroy the world while he gains the power to travel to the past, where he can relive his best days as much as he pleases. While childish and self-centered to the extreme, Reiji is also a refined artist whose magnetic persona and dangerously keen intellect makes him a gravitational force unto himself.
  • Kanako Watanabe aka President, in addition to leading the Adult Bank faction of the Glittering Crux Brigade, co-manages the business of her husband Leon, and has control over all of its profits and assets. Despite being a High Schooler, Kanako married Leon for his wealth, and while the things she does with it are done often either for pragmatic reasons or just for her own amusement, she's much more intelligent and calculating than she frequently lets on, often monitoring her underlings and knowing what other people are planning or doing but not acting so long as she senses no danger. Also a champion-level boxer and a tactical combatant, Kanako enjoys her fight with Takuto so much that she steals his first kiss as reward. Kanako greatly values her half sister Simone Aragon and cares for the citizens of Southern Cross Island, proving to be Crazy-Prepared when it's revealed that she bought her large yacht with the intention of making it an evacuation vessel to use during a crisis.
• Str.A.In.: Strategic Armored Infantry: Ralph Werec is the brother of heroine Sara Werec and second-in-command to Captain Vivian Medlock. After discovering that the Union was carrying out horrific experiments on the alien Emilies, a disillusioned Ralph defected from the Union to the Deague, and begins by leading an attack on a Union academy and killing everyone inside. Fighting against his revenge-seeking sister Sara, Ralph leads the Deague in fighting the Union and shows himself to be their greatest threat. Feigning loyalty to the Deague and seducing Vivian to get her and her soldiers on his side, he eventually reveals that he was using them all and betrays Vivian, hijacking the security system to kill her. Revealing that he despises both sides of the war and considers them equally corrupt, Ralph carries out his plan to Kill All Humans as revenge for their sins. Yet, despite opposing her, he loves Sara and explains his motivation to her in hopes that she will join him; when she refuses and defeats him in the final battle, he accepts that he went too far and gives her a tearful, heartfelt goodbye.
• Sword Art Online: Extra Edition: Kraken the Abyss Lord is a Quest Giver NPC for the "Deep Sea Plunderers" quest. Posing as a old human man named "Nerakk", he requests players for help in recovering a giant pearl intended to be a gift for a friend, which he claims was stolen by robbers and taken to the Undersea Temple. In reality, this is a ruse and the 'pearl' is in fact the Child's Egg, which was guarded by a magic barrier that prevents Kraken from entering. Most players are tricked into battling the temple guardians and stealing the egg for Kraken. Kirito's party realize his deception and refuse to hand over the egg, to which Kraken transforms into his true form to take the egg by force. Kraken very nearly kills the heroes, where they are saved by the last second intervention of Leviathan the Sea Lord.
• Tenchi Universe: Nagi is an infamous Bounty Hunter feared by the whole galaxy for her stone cold tactics, and Ryoko's rival, who will stop at nothing to defeat her. Tracking Ryoko, Nagi kidnaps Tenchi to lure her to a trap before battling her in brutal hand to hand combat, using her wit and technology to nearly kill her had it not been for luck. Spared by Ryoko after the fight, Nagi continuously battles her, using the chances to one up her, always nearly capturing her. When given an opportunity to catch her after being injured by the Jirai Military, Nagi decides not due to her weakened state and works with her to outwit the Jirai Military by using her skills and Ken-Ohki to pull a distraction gambit and flawlessly executing it, hoping to keep Ryoko alive in a suicide mission so she's the only one who will beat her showing her virtues yet ruthless will as a fighter.
• Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann: Lordgenome, the Spiral King and initial Big Bad, is the totalitarian ruler of the Beastman Empire who once challenged the Anti-Spirals as a great leader of mankind with his Spiral Powers. Defeated and faced with his race being wiped out, Lordgenome created the Beastmen to force humanity to live underground, sacrificing their freedom to keep them safe from the Anti-Spirals. Successful for many centuries with his armies, Lordgenome's forces prove a near-match for the heroes at every turn before they manage to fight their way through to his fortress. Seemingly killed by Simon, Lordgenome warns him of the risks of Spiral Power to humanity and when resurrected to help stop the Anti-Spirals, gives his life to finally end the alien monsters' threat.
• Thou Shalt Not Die: Principal Rokusho of the Special Abilities Private High School is a ruthless woman who sends the Special Students on a mission in France by lying to them about their objective, causing a student to be permanently paralyzed and triggering Mashiro's berserker transformation, something she considers a success. Later revealed to be a victim of Project Shirotae seeking revenge, Rokusho reveals that she's working alongside the murderous Tokiwa to give her students a chance to survive an attempted massacre at the hands of the JDSF and the American Army. Having learned and even bragged about hiding the truth of Project Shirotae from the general public to keep her cover, Rokusho aids in the plan to reveal the truth and unleashes her trump card, a Special Student and her newborn baby, who Rokusho saved to use their combined power to have a chance of victory. Successfully giving a future to her surviving students, Rokusho works with Kuroi and Tokiwa to find the clones of Miyata and kill all of them—except for the children—being successful at dismantling Miyata's horrible legacy.
• Tiger & Bunny: Yuri Petrov, "Lunatic," is a vigilante NEXT who forgoes any attempts at fame or upholding of morality, to instead dish out justice as he sees fit. Raised by an abusive superhero father, Lunatic came to despise all forms of evil in the world, believing the most sure path to safety and peace was the extermination of those who do wrong, and goes about executing and assassinating countless rapists and murderers, all while keeping up the guise of the charming judge of the city of Sternbild. As Lunatic, he gains immense popularity for his effectiveness, and his code of honor leads to him going so far as to save the life of his enemy Kotetsu, noting it wouldn't be just for a hero like him to be killed. Lunatic walks away from the story as dangerous and powerful as ever, showing no signs of being stopped by anyone in his self-perceived righteous crusade.
• Tokyo ESP: The Professor, formerly Hokusai Azuma, was an archeologist who discovered the Holy Ark containing the Super-Empowering Glowing Fishes. Becoming one of the first espers of the modern era, the Professor was betrayed and attacked by the General of his country and the Ares organization, which left his entire crew dead. Crafting his persona as "The Professor", he went back to Japan, adopting the son of one of his deceased crew-mates and begins plotting his vengeance against Ares, founding the terrorist group known as the Esper Liberation Front. Successfully opening the Ark atop the Tokyo Tower, the Professor causes a Mass Super-Empowering Event and despite his subsequent imprisonment, completes his revenge on Ares by leaving the heroes with instructions to take them down and free his beloved daughter. Driven to avenge his comrades, the Professor ruthlessly advances on his goals with care for none save his own child.
• Tokyo Ghoul:
  • Eto Yoshimura, the "One-Eyed Owl", is the leader of Aogiri Tree. A half-ghoul dedicated to destroying the organization V, Eto participates in a series of terrorist attacks, manipulating the Commission of Counter Ghoul (CCG) while killing off their investigators. Centering in on hero Ken Kaneki, Eto guides him to becoming the One-Eyed King and the savior of the ghoul race while manipulating events to her satisfaction. Even after being publicly outed as a ghoul, she uses a press conference to win sympathy for her race and set the events of the end in motion.
  • Kishou Arima, known as "The Reaper" is the greatest of Investigators and warriors in the CCG. Secretly half-ghoul himself, born in the breeding programs of the Sunlit Garden to be his father Tsuneyoshi Washuu's greatest weapon, Arima dedicated himself to hunting ghouls and luring them into skilled traps since his teen years. After defeating Eto, Arima began to secretly conspire with her and assisted her escape to eventually overthrow the Washuu Clan and their shadow organization "V." Later defeating ken Kaneki, Arima all but adopted him after Kaneki lost his memories. Secretly guiding him to become the new "King," Arima kills himself once Kaneki defeats him so Kaneki may use his death to unite the ghouls, stating he despised his own life where he only took from others but views Kaneki as the one good thing he might leave behind.
• Tokyo Tribe: Mera, leader of the Wu-Ronz and former best friend of hero Kai Deguchi, plays the role of the monstrous Buppa's right-hand man to avenge his parents' deaths at the latter's hands. A master manipulator, Mera evades blame for killing Buppa's son and manages to win back his most loyal followers by sheer charisma after his own second-in-command, the loathsome Skunk, betrays him. Karmically killing Buppa, Mera then makes amends with Kai and saves the woman he loves by chasing down Skunk with Kai's aid.
• Toriko: Midora, head of the Gourmet Corp., is one of the three adopted sons of Acacia and Froese. Gaining a deep hatred of the world and mankind after Froese's death, Midora forms the deadly Gourmet Corp. and operates under the nose of his elder brother Ichiryu to steal all ingredients and kidnap all the chefs he can with a series of gambits and plans before facing and defeating Ichiryu himself. Upon being informed of the existence of the group NEO and touched by Ichiryu's final moments, Midora becomes an uneasy ally to Toriko and the others, eventually spoiling NEO's plans and defeating their ostensible leader, the monstrous Dark Chef Joie, before sacrificing his life to return prosperity itself to the world.
• Trigun: The desert world of Gunsmoke is a relentless one, filled with bandits, natural dangers and political corruption. These individuals demonstrate the wit, ruthlessness and guile needed to navigate its chaos.
  • Manga: Millions Knives is a humanoid plant who was driven to misanthropy upon discovering humanity had performed horrifying experiments on his own kind. As a child having manipulated the "Great Fall," an event where he caused an entire fleet of humanity to crash to their deaths on the planet Gunsmoke, Knives now seeks revenge on both humans and his twin Vash for allying with them. Siccing the Gung-Ho Guns onto Vash to distract and torment him by targeting innocents, Knives traverses Gunsmoke and influences other Plants to merge with him, making him all the stronger as he reveals his final plan to lure the final vestiges of humanity to Gunsmoke, wipe them all out, and use their Plant captives to create a new, peaceful world of nature and flourishing life. Upon being defeated and witnessing humanity realize the error of their ways, Knives saves his brother's life and spends his last moments granting a poor family a bountiful apple tree as the only recompense for his atrocities he is able to perform.
  • Anime:
    • Legato Bluesummers sheds his manga counterpart's Laughing Mad insanity and numerous breakdowns, instead being a suave, always calm mastermind who serves as Vash's true Arch-Enemy in the series. A nihilist with the belief that all of humanity meaningless and deserves to be purged to save it from misery and despair, Legato allies with Millions Knives in preparing for the destruction of humankind and the rising of Plant life. Not entirely devoid of respectable attributes even as he sends the Gung-Ho Guns after Vash with orders to target civilians in the process just to torture the pacifistic hero, Legato slaughters a group of human traffickers and frees their slaves, informing the young women to use their time wisely before Knives wipes them all out. In the end, Legato forces Vash to break his Thou Shalt Not Kill code, giving him the ultimatum of either shooting Legato or watching as his best friends are murdered by the villain, and dies with a smile on his face as he knows the act of taking a human life will drive Vash into utter despair.
    • (Episode 4: "Love And Peace"): Ingway is a Clint Eastwood inspired bandit who infiltrates a bar that Milly and Meryl were in before holding Stefany, the daughter of the wealthiest man in town, Earl Bostalk, hostage. Demanding $$100,000 and a wagon, Ingway is suspicious when the Sheriff complies, sending one of his men to investigate. When it’s revealed to be a ruse, Ingway defeats the mercenaries the Sheriff hired with Vash’s assistance before revealing his true intention: to lure Bostalk to attain vengeance for him murdering the town’s original inhabitants, of which a teenage Ingway was the only survivor, and taking the land as his own. Cornering Bostalk, Ingway has a change of heart, merely shooting his shoulder before voluntarily turning himself in, content to have exposed Bostalk's crimes.
    • (Episodes 7-8): Kaite is the neglected son of the inventor of the Sand Steamer, Richard Trevisick. Left homeless after his father’s death, he agreed to work with the infamous "Bad Lads" Gang to rob the steamer for money, sneaking onboard and appealing to Vash's kind-heartedness with a fabricated sob story before knocking him out and signaling the Bad Lad’s leader B.D Nemo to rob the passengers. After discovering Nemo intends to crash the Steamer off a cliff, Kaite is horrified and escapes with a recently-conscious Vash. Initially considering leaving the passengers to their fate, Kaite relents and acts as Mission Control to Vash, using a detailed blueprint he made through observing his father’s work. After Vash makes a wrong turn, Kaite is knocked unconscious, but awakens after Vash beats Nemo in a duel, providing instruction to the train attendants before performing a Heroic Sacrifice to switch off an obscured pressure valve in the boiler room. Kaite manages to survive his burns and thanks Vash for helping him follow the righteous path his father wanted him to take.
• Tropical Citron, by Jiro Matsumoto: The Horse is a creature from the same dimension as the Rabbit, who opposes the latter's tyranny out of respect for free will. Following his ideals, the Horse avoids direct action and prefers using others, becoming the driver of the witch Mako to help her rebellion. When the protagonist Soma wants to leave March Town, the Horse manipulates him into accepting his role to stay to fight the Rabbit. The Horse also endangers an innocent woman who protected his weakened ally, exposing her to the attention of the Rabbit before appearing to protect her himself. Later, the Horse's plans force Soma to kill a frail ally to extract the Silver Bullets that said ally obtained at the cost of his sanity. Soma uses the bullets during the Carnival, where the Horse sends the Jabberwocky group to distract the Rabbit's human guards and allows Soma to kill the Rabbit and liberate the town. In the epilogue, the Horse continues to be Mako's driver and shows his respects to Soma's memory, considering him a Tropical Citron, symbol of a chaotic era.
• Tweeny Witches: Sigma is a young, treacherous warlock with a mysterious agenda of his own. Introduced as an Aloof Ally of the Magical Girl Squad, Sigma almost manipulates them into helping him get the True Book of Spells for his leader, Grande. After getting imprisoned for failure, Sigma uses Jidan's connection to Arusu, the owner of the book, in an attempt to trick his superiors into releasing him. Even after the warlocks decide to keep him imprisoned, Sigma manages to escape with Jidan when the warlocks try to transfer the latter as hostage. Saving Arusu from the destruction of Wizard Kingdom, Sigma reveals that his true goal is to avenge his father through the savior as Grande killed Sigma's father for foretelling the savior's appearance. An impressive manipulator despite his young age, Sigma ultimately plays an instrumental role in saving the Magical Realm.
• The Vampire Dies in No Time:
  • Fukuma is the dreaded yet effective editor for Ronaldo's books. When Ronaldo forgets to meet his deadline, Fukuma sees through his attempts at trickery and locks him in a hollowed out iron maiden until Ronaldo finishes his work. Even Ronaldo has to admit his unorthodox methods lead to him writing a brilliant book and Fukuma ridigly monitors Ronaldo to make sure the writer keeps up promotion to ensure good sales.
  • The Progenitor, Draluc's grandfather and implied to be Dracula himself, is a hilariously resilient, easygoing vampire who often forces his family to partake in whatever games or hobbies he's invested in during his off-time. Lately forcing his family to compete in a handmade board game, the Progenitor's game is entirely unfair, with most spaces forcing players into surprise traps or embarrassing situations.
  • Mr. Lewd Talk is a perverted but charming vampire who wishes to spread lewdness across the world. Starting trouble with his hypnotizing staff, Mr. Lewd Talk incapacitates all the vampire hunters as they expose their fetishes and even when caught and beaten proudly states his goal to spread lewdness has been immortalized and later returns to cover the district in a barrier making lewd phrases replace power.
• Vinland Saga:
  • Askeladd Olafson introduces himself to the audience sacking a fort and robbing it of its riches with a series of clever schemes, barely shedding a drop of blood. Leader of a group of Viking raiders, Askeladd was born the son of a slave and a lord. Murdering his father years later after his mother's death, Askeladd framed one of his brothers after ingratiating himself to his family. Playing the cutthroat court of King Sweyn with clever gambits, Askeladd has the caretaker of the weak prince Canute murdered to build Canute into an ideal candidate for the throne. Also driven by his desire to protect his maternal homeland of Wales, Askeladd finds himself briefly outplayed by Sweyn who demands he kill Canute or see Wales invaded by the Danes. Askeladd instead chooses to kill Sweyn and allow Canute to kill him, achieving all his goals posthumously by making Canute a beloved, respected King and knowing the young man will forge Askeladd's ideal kingdom and defend Wales out of gratitude.
  • King Canute begins the series as a weak and delicate prince coddled by his guardian Ragnar and despised by his father King Sweyn. After Ragnar's murder, Canute witnesses the horrors of battle and the futility of love on earth. Growing to despise God for toying with mankind, Canute vows to create a utopia on earth and grows substantially, using body doubles and preparing to overcome his father by allying with Asekladd. Upon becoming King when Askeladd kills his father, Canute proceeds to poison his brother Harald to take over Denmark. He then initiates a plot to take over the Ketil farm by framing the Ketils as outlaws and launching a full war against them with nothing to stand in the way of his dream.
• The Vision of Escaflowne:
  • Folken Fanel, Van's elder brother, is the chief strategist and tactician of the Zaibach Empire, seeking to bring about a future free of uncertainty. Tasked with retrieving Escaflowne, Folken trails the heroes across various countries and landscapes, outmaneuvering them and luring them into traps while managing to acquire the power of Atlantis, all the while trying to convince Van to join the Empire to ensure his brother's safety. When Van and Hitomi's bond threatens Emperor Dornkirk's ideal future, Folken uses the fate alteration machine to separate them and sway Hitomi towards her other love interest, Allen. Ultimately realizing the error in Dornkirk's methods, Folken allies with the heroes and gives information on the Empire's tactics and weapons to help Van's cause, resolving to learn the laws of destiny himself to remake the world into a better place.
  • Emperor Dornkirk, ruler of the Zaibach Empire, was formerly a scientist from Earth obsessed with learning the laws of destiny. Transported to Gaea, Dornkirk used his knowledge of science to transform the chaotic land into a powerful, technologically advanced nation. Seeking the power of Atlantis to control destiny, Dornkirk plans to use Hitomi and Escaflowne as the final piece in his plan. Eventually, Dornkirk allows Folken to kill him, using Hitomi's anguish to trigger the fate alteration machine and grant everyone their wishes, hoping to create an ideal future for everyone.

W - Z

• Wedding Peach: Potamos is a water demon and the final Arc Villain. Initially having a crush on the fire demon Ignis, she gives him a Mercy Kill when he's redeemed and has his powers drained, vowing revenge on the Love Angels. Potamos attempts to kill them several times and is nearly successful, once catching them in their civilian identities by not letting them transform, and only fails due to outside interference. Her crush on Yosuke/Viento ultimately leads to her taking a mortal wound for him, and she dies happy that he lived, with Wedding Peach realizing her feelings for him were genuine.
• When Night Falls by Yuu Masako: Wakaru Mochizuki is a young man set on avenging his beloved sister Saya after her murderers are released from jail. Awakening the ability to enter into the dreams of others to hurt them in real life after fulfilling specific conditions, Wakaru uses his powers to attack Baba Knight and moves to target Sakamoto, disguising himself as a woman and winning a game against him to ask about Saya's murder, being willing to forgive him if he shows regret but killing him when he doesn't. Discovering that Baba survived and told the police about his powers, Wakaru manipulates the memories of Baba's brother so that he believes that he injured his sibling to clear his own name. Wakaru then manipulates Baba into attacking him in real life, using the opportunity to kill Baba in "self-defense". When attempting to deal with the ruthless criminal Akiyama, Wakaru works with an employee, trying to get rid of his boss and allows himself to be beaten so he can enter on Akiyama's dreams before luring Akiyama into dropping his cover, causing his arrest and eventual death.
• Witch Craft Works: Weekend is a Tower Witch and explosive trap master who makes deals with other witches to weaken the seals holding the White Princess Evermillion. With a powerful bomb, Weekend distracts Kazane Kagari with protecting Tougetsu City, while she uses bombs she had planted prior to damage the bases of the Workshop Witches. Freeing herself when seemingly defeated, Weekend nearly defeats Ayaka Kagari in combat, only losing due to third party intervention and ends up joining the heroes. After joining them, Weekend proves herself an inquisitive investigator, coming close to finding the answer to a series of mysterious events and only stopped by the antics of her ally. Though a self proclaimed mediocre witch, Weekend uses a combination of intelligence and technology to take down two of the series' most powerful magic users.
• World Embryo:
  • Takao Mishima, born as Ryuusei Takao, used to be a child living on Hatsumi Island, taking care of the local Coffin Princess Julie. Forced by his family to betray his then-friend Shirou Karasawa, Takao later helps him to bring back his deceased girlfriend as a Coffin Princess. Becoming the only survivor of the destruction of the island at Shirou's hands, Takao is betrayed and framed as a murderer by him. He becomes the feared Jinki Hunter, killing members of F.L.A.G and infected humans before their transformation. Meeting a girl who admires him, Takao starts to care for her, even comforting her after she is lethally hurt by Kanshuus. He allies with his former enemy, protagonist Riku Amami, to avenge her, and they manage to defeat Shirou together. After the Coffin Princess Amane endangers the world, Takao works with the spirits of the people from Hatsume Island to convince heroine Rene Arisugawa to become another Princess as a way to counter Amane, succeeding and personally dealing the final blow. Betrayed by the spirits, Takao is willing to be killed to save the world, and in the epilogue, Takao is determined to save Riku from himself, just as Riku did for him.
  • Born Amane Sasamori, Amane Amami is Riku Amami's adoptive sister and first love. A kind teenager forced into becoming a Coffin Princess for multiple reasons and becoming aware of the real nature of humanity and the corruption inside the World Embryo, she decides to absorb humanity inside a virtual paradise. To do so, she manipulates her family and sends a baby version of herself, later known as Neene, to them, hoping that she becomes strong enough to take control of her. Suceeding, Amane takes control of Neene's body and tries to cause the destruction of the world while faking a villainous personality. After the fate of humanity is decided in a game, The Coffin Princess cheats by forcing F.L.A.G. members into fighting their traumas before revealing that it was just a trap to capture Jinki users. Stopped only by Takao and Rene, who interrupt her duel with Riku, she apologizes to him for all the pain that she caused to him before ensuring Neene's survival, knowing that she would be vital to save humanity.
  • A Consummate Liar since childhood despite his kindness, Suraga, alias of Riku Amami himself, is the newest threat to humanity after Shirou and the above mentioned Coffin Princess. Having lost all hope after his beloved lose her memories and determined to get them back by using the Kanshuu, Suraga causes multiple controlled Kanshuu outbreaks, knowing that his former friends will stop them and return the victims back to normality. Having lied to the world itself by his own words, Suraga's attacks becomes a routine menace in the new world. After his plan is eventually discovered by the remaining Coffin Princesses, they use Takao to force him to confess his plan before helping him to—after lots of losses—get his happy family back.
• The World's Finest Assassin (2021 anime): Cian Tuatha Dé, Lugh’s loving father, is the head of the House of Tuatha Dé, and an incredible assassin in his own right who made Lugh into the skilled killer he is today. Disguising his hits by posing as the Alvan Kingdom’s medical expert, Cian uses a wide variety of tactics, disguises, and clever traps to kill his targets while not getting caught, all while believing that murder is necessary to protect his kingdom. Raising Lugh to be his heir, Cian has him kill death row inmates so that he won't grow hesitant over killing people, while letting him know that he will be raised not as a weapon, but as a person, who must possess human values to be a better killer. Cian is even able to get the experienced Lugh into the position of aristocrat by having him injure the supposed runner-up as a test of strength. Getting Lugh to pose as a successful merchant to get closer to his targets and privately build a team of assassins, Cian ultimately does what he can to give Lugh the life he thinks he deserves, while doing what he must to assist him in his plan to defeat the Hero.
• Yōtōden, by Takeshi Narumi: Ranmaru Mori is the ruthless, brilliant true lord of the Oboro ninja who lacks the sadism of his animated counterparts. Manipulating Oda Nobunaga into attacking ninja villages, Ranmaru makes sure the three heroes find the magic blades he created so he might unleash the power of the underworld when they are brought together. Having them guided while he rules from the shadows, Ranmaru's devotion to his own kind is so great he sacrifices his consenting lover-member of the Oboro in a ritual so the two might see his ambitions fulfilled.
• Yurei Deco: Injunction Jo, the head of Customer Center and the ruler of Mark Twain, runs the algorithm of Tom Sawyer Island by mandating the censoring of online information leading to the island's government becoming a totalitarian regime. Having grown bored with her profession, Injunction Jo decides to elect a successor. She creates the identity of Phantom ZERO and starts erasing "love" at the risk of collapsing the island's economy. After being one step ahead of the Ghost Detective Club, Injunction Jo puts Hack into a virtual reality expressing amusement at her breaking out of it. She then appoints her with running the island's algorithm, retires, and goes on vacation to explore the world.
• YuYu Hakusho:
  • Sakyo is a charming, charismatic member of the Black Black Club who came up from nothing. A born sociopath who despised his honest, loving family, Sakyo graduated from torturing animals into high stakes gambling where he amassed a fortune to join the demon-trafficking and torturing Black Black Club. Deciding to advance even further, Sakyo plays the group's founder Gonzo Tarukane by secretly paying off the Toguro brothers when Tarukane hires them as bodyguards, rigging the gambles he makes with Tarukane by having the Toguro brothers take a dive against Team Urameshi. Setting up his team to fight in the Dark Tournament, Sakyo takes a curious liking to Shizuru Kuwabara and protects her during the events while also manipulating and eventually disposing of the rest of the Black Black Club, before gambling his own life on Toguro's victory in order to insure he can see a portal opened to the Demon World out of sheer morbid curiosity. When Toguro is defeated, Sakyo immediately offers his life without complaint, bidding a last fond farewell to Shizuru first.
  • The Younger Toguro brother sold his soul 50 years ago to become a powerful demon after winning the Dark Tournament in despair over the deaths of his students and the knowledge of his impending mortality. In present, having grown disillusioned with his life, he manipulates the events with Gonzo Tarukane to see if Yusuke Urameshi is a worthy adversary and forces him and team to join the Dark Tournament. Toguro manipulates Yusuke into becoming stronger while also keeping him from making Toguro's mistakes before the final match. After killing Yusuke's mentor, his former teammate and lover Genkai, Toguro is dissatisfied with Yusuke's strength and seemingly murders his friend Kuwabara to force him to fight all out, only to reveal he faked Kuwabara's death. Unlike his twisted elder brother, Toguro never sold his pride along with his soul and displays a true sense of honor, grateful to give his all against a final worthy adversary.
  • Shinobu Sensui, the "Black Angel", was once a brilliant young Spirit Detective whose idealistic view of humans was shattered by the Black Black Club. Years later, Sensui uses the depraved Chapter Black tape to recruit a group of psychics to his side as Team Urameshi goes after him, manipulating all his enemies and allies alike to achieve his goals and weaken Yusuke's team. In one instance, Sensui forces Kurama to duel in a game against a little boy, with the boy not knowing he will die if he loses. Sensui is aware Kurama will do it, but knows it will shake him up too much to be of use in fighting Sensui at his best later, while also knowing a guilt-stricken Koenma will use up too much power restoring the boy to life. Sensui also uses his multiple personalities to bear the burdens of his crimes, revealing his true self in time to defeat and even kill Yusuke before opening a path to the demon world, with his true goal being an elaborate suicide attempt to die at the hands of a powerful demon to atone for taking so many demon lives in the past. Passing as a dark mirror to Yusuke himself, Sensui remains one of his most sympathetic and fascinating enemies.
  • Kurama was once an infamous demon bandit named Yoko Kurama until he was nearly killed by a Demon Hunter and was forced to reincarnate into the human fetus of the nearest human woman living as Shuichi Minamino. Upon joining Team Urameshi and aiding Yusuke in his missions he would win his battles not just with power but though intelligence making him a master planner when it comes to fighting his enemies even before the fight begins. Manipulating his enemies into thinking they have the advantage when in reality they were already defeated leading to instant deaths or fates worse than death. Even when forced to work for Yomi he still shows his strategic side when dealing with Yomi’s arrogant second in command by turning his minion against him and relaying false information, taking both his position and his life in the process. Intelligent and ruthless Kurama has proven himself to be one of Yusuke’s most allies.
  • Yomi is one of The Three Kings of the demon world and is the central antagonist during the Three Kings Saga. Originally serving Kurama back in his days as Yoko, he was an impatient and headstrong thief whose recklessness eventually caught up with him costing him his sight. After learning from his mistake he would eventually become one of the most powerful and intelligent demons in existence and carve out his own empire. Upon Raizen's upcoming death Yomi begins his plan to conquer not only demon world but also the human and spirit worlds as well, hoping to end the squabbling. He would be one of the few people who can outsmart Kurama by holding his family hostage and testing him to see if he was worthy of becoming his second in command while competing with the current one. After meeting with Yusuke and hearing his proposal to have a fighting tournament rather than a war he reluctantly agrees to his terms for the Makai Tournament, his warrior's spirit is reawakened and decides that he wants to achieve his goal of ruling the three worlds if he can earn it. When he loses the tournament he accepts the loss with grace and goes on a journey with his son leaving his empire behind, parting as friends with Kurama.
• Zatch Bell!:
  • Zeno Bell is the twin brother of Zatch who, thanks to unfortunate circumstances, comes to resent Zatch and desires both the Mamodo World crown and to make his sibling's life miserable. Learning the existence of the ancient Mamodo weapon Faudo, Zeno strays to the shadows and uses a doll-like emissary to manipulate both Zatch's group of friends as well as Leo and the Faudo cult against one another. Upon Faudo's awakening, after Leo weakens the heroes, Zeno sneaks into the control room, sends Leo away, and takes over control of Faudo in one fell swoop. Earning the loyalty of the other cult members, Zeno still uses the power of Godafu as a contingency in the event one tries to betray him and shows flexibility as a fighter. Even so, Zeno is ruthless enough to make people submit to his ways through fear and pain. Upon the realization Zatch lived a horrible life himself and that their father hid the whole story from him, Zeno immediately changes his ways and, in his final moments in the Human World, provides the twin he now loves everything he needs for the tournament.
  • Vincent Bari and Gustav, seemingly another run-of-the-mill powerhouse in the tournament, stand out for their surprising depth. Bari, obsessed with strength but lacking meaningful purpose, seeks out Zatch Bell to engage in combat, showing tactical ability to complement his raw power. Gustav, while a dutiful partner, subliminally urges Bari to think more deeply about his desires, insightfully pushing him to be a better Mamodo at heart. Arriving during the Faudo arc to confront his old rival Keith, Bari displays tremendous growth as both a fighter and person, holding no tolerance for Keith's petty grudge while he and Gustav analyze every single spell he uses and counterattack accordingly with ease. In the climax against Clear Note, Bari once again demonstrates his newfound skills by skillfully circumventing the nigh-impenetrable barrier around Vino to aid Zatch.
  • Robnos, a young but crafty troll smarter than his sniveling bully of a partner Ruku, tricks Zatch and Kiyo into an industrial freezer by pretending to have taken the latter's classmate hostage to disadvantage them in the subsequent battle from the very beginning. Using the environment to manipulate the trajectory of his Biratsu spell, Robnos hid a second body amongst the objects to continue his ploy even after Kiyo figured out the first layer. All fun and games even after elimination, Robnos rewards Zatch with a tip someone who resembled him was in England, instrumental to discerning the secret behind his amnesia.
  • Garza and Baransha are two strategic hunters who manipulated Kiyo, Zatch, and others to a hot springs vacation in a remote forest, where after tricking the first two to the forest, proceed to push them to the brink with their hunting capabilities. With Garza disguising himself as a deer and Baransha using her animal instincts and invisibility, they patiently attempt to erode Kiyo's "power from within" so they can eliminate Zatch in one fell swoop. Although briefly outsmarted by Zatch, the two escape via a water to hunt another day.