In the legendary clash between heroes and villains, audiences are often expected to root for the characters who are presented to them as morally superior, or "heroes." This may be easier to distinguish in some anime more than others, though it is nonetheless ubiquitous in the medium.
Sometimes, the way heroes are depicted is disingenuous, with their actions portraying them as just as bad as ~ if not even worse ~ than they villainy they purport to fight against. It's time to call out the worst of the best, acknowledging 10 anime heroes whose evil matches that of their foes.
10 Guts - Berserk
Guts is brutal against many of his opponents and arguably worse than some of them. Many of his greatest misdeeds are against the best-intended villains ~ the Holy Iron Chain Knights.
After they had captured him alive, Guts seized his interrogator, took her hostage, and brutalized the entire camp he was in. He was not concerned about slaying those who challenged him even if they were simply misguided by their commanders, making it even more difficult to apprehend him once again. His captive was traumatized well after the incident was over.
9 Mello - Death Note
Given that Mello is a hero by virtue that Light Yagami is Death Note's villain (and distinguishing the difference between protagonist and hero), Mello is handily the most depraved person to attempt bringing Light down.
Understanding Kira's identity both from his collaboration with Near and L's previous works, he captured Light's sister to force his hand. If she died, it entailed that Yagami would not want her interrogated. Kira may have been comfortable letting Mello execute her, but because Soichiro had the Note and shinigami eyes, he knew he needed to get involved to protect himself.
8 Endeavor - My Hero Academia
Endeavor's implacable drive to succeed may be what makes him the second greatest hero in all of Japan, though his hubris drove a wedge between him and the people he purports to protect. He was so abusive to Shoto's mother that she would in turn permanently scar their young child, a mark Todoroki would be forced to live with for the rest of his life.
He was equally demanding of him before the two inevitably distanced. While the flame hero hopes to become a better person and restore his image as a hero, his past is more checkered than many of the villains he fights.
7 Seto Kaiba - Yu-Gi-Oh!
Though Kaiba and Yugi have clashed more than once, their goals have coincided often enough that the aggregate of Seto's actions render him a protagonist, not a villain. He nobly attempted to defeat Pegasus and liberate his brother Mokuba, as well as faced off against Marik Ishtar and his goons alongside the Pharaoh.
Despite this alleged benevolence, he has also demonstrated to be a sociopath. When he hospitalized Yugi's grandfather and forced him to participate in a gauntlet of rigged games, he had fully intended to kill Yugi for the humiliation of defeating him in a previous duel. He even made them fight a serial killer in a confined dungeon.
6 Gowther - Seven Deadly Sins
Having served as a member of the Ten Commandments, Gowther's placid demeanor and misunderstanding of human emotion make him just as dangerous as an ally as he is an enemy. He deliberately erased his own memories after the death of a loved one, which as poignant as it might be, still demonstrates an aversion to responsibility.
More egregiously, he sabotaged King's relationship with Diane by erasing her memories a second time at his whim and openly attacked Escanor. He has individually caused more damage and distrust among his team than Fraudrin could have ever dreamed.
5 Scar - Fullmetal Alchemist
Scar's bloodstained legacy is one that polarizes that of his sworn enemy, Fuhrer King Bradley. He has committed acts of terrorism against the people of Amestris, even going as far as attempting to kill Edward Elric in the middle of the street.
Unlike Bradley who was born to serve a higher purpose, vengeance is the only thing which spurs Scar forward, apathetic as to who he must hurt to achieve it. Fortunately, he grows as a character as the series progressed.
4 Itachi Uchiha - Naruto
Itachi Uchiha's actions may have been both under orders and for the overall peace of the village, though they were nonetheless horrific. He enacted genocide on an entire village as his younger brother watched, hoping that he would become consumed by hatred so he would unlock the full potential of the Sharingan and protect Konoha.
He made for a useful spy in the Akatsuki, checking their power and ensuring that regardless of what became of their progress, the Leaf would be safe. Nonetheless, his actions motivated many of the series' villains against the same people he hoped to protect.
3 Bakugo - My Hero Academia
Bakugo may have passed up an offer by the League of Villains to join their ranks, but that does not excuse him from his atrocious behavior. He is obsessed with being glorified and acknowledged far more than helping people, a living testimony to the self-aggrandizing mentality Stain fights against.
Additionally, he constantly threatens to kill his own friends, was emotionally and physically abusive to Midoriya throughout their childhood out of an inherent sense of superiority, and beat him to a pulp in the street when he felt insecure about Deku's power progression.
2 Mayuri Kurotsuchi - Bleach
The Gotel Captain responsible for the Department of Research and Development has much to answer for. He delights in tormenting his enemies, is willing to cripple his allies, and even sacrificed his own assistant to achieve victory.
Additionally, he performed a series of sadistic (though educational) experiments on Soken Ishida, Uryu's grandfather. Through his association with the Soul Society, he is granted immunity for his many war crimes so long as he remains loyal.
1 Isaac Netero - Hunter X Hunter
When Isaac Netero was finally face to face with the King of Ants, he was more unfair and bestial than his allegedly maligned counterpart. He would not let Meruem see to the wounds of his blind companion, insisting they fight immediately.
When Meruem revealed that he had abandoned his quest for global domination, Isaac stubbornly insisted to continue their battle and promised to tell him his name, should he be victorious. It was finally revealed that Netero was just as interested in a challenge he could not possibly overcome as he was saving the human race.