When you think of the amazing world of My Hero Academia, you probably think first of the heroes who work tirelessly to keep the world safe. However, a hero is nothing without a good villain who can push his limits.
Kohei Horikoshi, the creator of this fantasy universe, has done an amazing job of populating his world with compelling, close-knit villains. Not all of the show’s villains are as iconic as the rest, but there are some that fans will always remember fondly. Below, we’ll talk about the villains that left their mark on My Hero Academia fans.
Spoiler warning: Beware of major spoilers for My Hero Academia!
10 High-end Nomos
Most people in Japan are born with a simple and distinct whim. While some powers are many times more effective or flashy than others, almost no one has more than one ability. Which, with the exception of Nomo, are GMOs that have been given many quirks artificially. The vast majority of these monster-like beings end up losing their minds due to stress caused by their many quirks.
Those whose brains are still intact are considered high-ranking Nomus, highly intelligent creatures endowed with various powers that can be cruel enemies for even the best of heroes. Unfortunately, their designs are very similar, which makes it hard for fans to tell them apart.
9 Re-destroy
As the leader of the Meta Liberation Army, Rikiya Yotsubashi was a firm believer in the idea that those with powerful quirks should be the ones who rule. As CEO of Detnerat, Re-Destro has amassed a massive army with which he plans to conquer Japan.
While Rikiya appears as a kind and friendly person, he is a blunt, harsh and prejudiced man who believes himself to be superior to others. His power, Stress, allowed him to transform his anger, stress, and general negative emotions into raw power. However, his entire army is overpowered by the League of Villains, proving to Re-Destro that strength isn’t everything.
8 Gigantomachia
One of the many lessons fans learned while watching My Hero Academia is that size doesn’t make you a better fighter. However, All For One’s trump card, the massive Gigantomachia, proves that someone’s size can sometimes give them an advantage.
Gigantomachia is not only a huge individual, standing as tall as 82 feet, but it also possesses nearly unbreakable skin. He also possesses tremendous strength, with the ability to demolish buildings with one hand. Unfortunately, Gigantomachia can only become active if ordered by All For One or Shigaraki to do so, leaving him out of combat if this condition is not met.
7 dabby
Dabby’s tragic story began when his father, Endeavor, discovered Quirk, Blueflame. Believing this power to be the ability to transcend all power, young Enji pushes Touya to his limits, causing him severe physical and mental damage. Dappy’s mental state has worsened so badly, that he loses control of his power, starting a wildfire that his family thought was dead (although in a later and shocking plot twist, he is revealed to still be alive).
Due to his traumatic experience, Dabi’s mission in life has come to destroy Endeavor and everything he holds dear. The all-powerful fire-based Quirk is many times more powerful than any other flame we’ve seen on the show. However, Dabi is not resistant to the heat of the flames, which means that he can still be damaged by his daring during battle.
6 Nice criminal
Not every villain in My Hero Academia has a sinister purpose behind their activities. Some, like only the gentle and polite criminal, wanted to be remembered by the people of the world. When he was young, Gentle dreamed of becoming a hero until a misuse of his power caused the death of an innocent man.
Unable to join any hero academy, Gentle turned into a villain. With the help of his inseparable buddy La Brava, he begins broadcasting his crimes to everyone online in an effort to become a famous villain. However, Gentle never wanted to become evil, and after his fight with Deku, it seemed as if he was going to turn over a new leaf.
5 twice
Jin used to be an ordinary high school student who lost both of his parents in a vicious attack. This tragedy forced him to find work to support himself. One unfortunate day, Jin was delivering a package to his boss when he ran over an important businessman with his motorcycle. He was fired on the spot, leaving him neither a job nor money.
Adopting Twice’s persona, Gene begins using his Quirk, which allows him to create exact copies of himself, to commit crimes. Tragically, every single copy of Jane thought she was the original, causing the man to slowly lose his mind. While his ability to create infinite copies of himself is extremely powerful, the downside of his mind breaking has prevented Twice from using it effectively.
4 Repair
For most people in Japan, quirks are a blessing, as they make life easier for most people. For Kai, aka the villain, these powers were a disease that needed to be eradicated. Despite hating it, Overhaul’s Quirk was extremely powerful and helped him take over the Japanese Yakuza with relative ease.
This ability allowed Chisaki to take anything apart and put it back together with the flick of his hands. He could use this power to kill anyone with a single finger or to fuse his body with the power of his subordinates. Still, Kai was overconfident, which eventually ended up being him.
3 All for one
There’s a name among Japan’s criminals that can send even the bravest of villains into a frenzy, All For One. Born during the dawn of the Quirks, this brutal megalomaniac has been ruling the criminal world of the aforementioned countries for centuries. All For One was born with the ability to take and give any quirk they desire.
Since discovering his power, All For One has begun to gain a large number of different quirks, transforming into one of the most powerful beings in the entire world. He has a penchant for almost any situation, from advanced regeneration to super strength. However, his superiority complex causes him to underestimate his opponents, such as All Might, who he ends up defeating.
2 stain
Several years before the show began, a vigilante known as Stendhal fought to make the streets of Japan a safer place. When he became disillusioned with how heroes prefer fame to doing what’s right, he becomes Champion Killer: The Smudge.
Chizome started killing those heroes he considered fake, those who were working for money or adoration. While his methods weren’t the right ones, Stain truly believed that heroes should choose this job because they wanted to save people, not for the sake of fortune. As of now, Stain is reluctant to work with the champions, as he doesn’t agree with the goals of the League of Villains.
1 Tomura Shigaraki
As a young child, Tomura Shigaraki was known as Tenko Shimura, the grandson of Nana. His father hated heroes because his mother abandoned him when he was young. He forbids Tenko to even think of heroes, much to Kid’s dismay. The young boy grew up in fear of his father, to the point where his rebuke made him lose control of his Quirk.
His power, Decay, activated, turning his entire family into dust. He was saved by the All For One Corporation, who made him hate the heroes. Shigaraki worked tirelessly to bring down the Hero Society, even inheriting Quirk All For One and its power when its master was imprisoned. Shigaraki is an outrageous villain who doesn’t care who hurts him, but he’s also a victim of a system that refused to help him and a real villain who manipulated him into becoming a monster.
