Beginning as an antagonist in the Avatar series, Zuko was as worthy of being a villain as he was a hero. The son of Fire Lord Ozai has trained to perfect his martial and firebending skills, and as a result, he was one of the most powerful characters in the original story.

RELATED: Avatar: 5 Fullmetal Alchemist Characters Aang Could Defeat (& 5 He'd Lose To)

Nonetheless, his strength can only be contextualized through his own universe. By matching him against the many characters of My Hero Academia, there's an opportunity to gauge how much merit the future king of the Fire Nation actually has in battle.

10 COULD BEAT: Eraserhead Because Zuko's Swordsmanship Is Enough

Eraserhead Scar My Hero Academia

Eraserhead's ability to negate one's quirk would effectively allow him to prevent Zuko from bending from a distance. This takes the Fire Nation prince out of his element since it deprives him of his most useful asset.

However, Zuko has demonstrated himself to be a formidable warrior even without fire. He was able to defeat dozens of soldiers and even Jet all without using his special bending once. Given that the prince is better armed than the pro hero (measuring his sword against Aizawa's shroud), it follows that the teacher wouldn't be able to last even if he kept his eyes open through the entire fight.

9 WOULD LOSE TO: Todoroki Because He Has Zuko's Firebending In Addition To Ice Manipulation

Shoto Icy Hot My Hero Academia

Shoto Todoroki is able to "bend" both ice and fire, immediately giving him an advantage over Zuko. Perhaps more impressively is the caliber at which he can expend his power; a single stroke of his arm can cause a massive glacier, freezing towering robots or even parts of an entire stadium.

Such an impressive berth entails that despite the prince's superior agility and combat experience, he would not able to jump out of the way before being completely immobilized from his neck down. Though he could use his bending to potentially escape, it would give Shoto the chance he needs to finish the fight.

8 COULD BEAT: Himiko Toga Because She's Too Sloppy Of A Fighter

Himiko Toga From My Hero Academia

Himiko Toga's quirk has the potential to render her a serious threat. If she is able to imbibe Zuko's blood, she would be able to copy his firebending and use it for herself.

However, not only is the villain a sloppy fighter (as demonstrated through her battle against Froppy), mimicking the power of her target does not necessarily entail she'll also adopt their skill. Consequently, Zuko would be able to avoid her flaming projectiles with little difficulty (as he did against Azula), responding with attacks that she could not hope to obviate.

7 WOULD LOSE TO: Izuku Midoriya With His Ability To Read His Foe's Moves

deku glowing

Izuku Midoriya's "One For All" increases his physical traits, and upon further mastery, allows him to shoot air-based projectiles through strategic flicks of his fingers. These attacks were devastating enough to disorient skilled villains such as Gentle Criminal, forcing Zuko to remain on his feet from the beginning of the battle.

Though Deku's physical strength may be his key in defeating the prince, his ability to anticipate his opponents' movements would guarantee the battle ends in his favor. He would be able to navigate Zuko's bending in the same way he dodged Bakugo's explosions, landing a decisive strike to take the prince down.

6 COULD BEAT: Stain Because Zuko Can Avoid Shedding Any Blood

Stain MHA

Stain's "Blood Curdle" quirk usually depends on the notion that he is a more skilled swordsman than the person he fighting. While many of his heroic adversaries are unarmed, he would find no such fortune when clashing against Zuko.

Since the prince has reflexes honed enough to dodge lightning and physical strength capable of cracking boulders, he would be able to synthesize his bending with natural martial prowess in order to bring down the vigilante before a single drop of blood has been shed.

5 WOULD LOSE TO: Mirio Because Zuko's Fire Is Not Encompassing Enough

Mirio MHA

Mirio's "Permeation" allows him to become almost completely intangible. Even without it, he nearly defeated Overhaul (a moderately experienced brawler) using raw physical force and agility alone.

This is a testament to his reflexes and how quickly he can opt between corporeal and incorporeal forms. Since Zuko's firebending is targeted and not overwhelmingly encompassing (except in the event of Sozin's comet), he would not have the consistent power necessary to put the elusive hero down and incinerate whatever part of Lemillion's body kept him from falling through the floor.

4 COULD BEAT: Tokoyami Because His Light Weakness Is Zuko's Strength

fumikage tokoyami in my hero academia fighting

Against ordinary opponents, Tokoyami is an almost insurmountable threat. At night, his "Dark Shadow" is able to grow into an unstoppable behemoth that can obliterate professional villains in a single stroke of its deadly claws.

RELATED: My Hero Academia: 5 Students Stronger Than Fumikage Tokoyami (& 5 Weaker Than Him)

However, its one weakness is Zuko's strength; light. The prince's bending would be able to stave off his monstrous opponent, weakening him into a more manageable form. While this would allow Tokoyami to control Dark Shadow better and use his quirk more strategically, it would also reduce the hero's strength and render him vulnerable for Zuko's pending attack.

3 WOULD LOSE TO: High-End With His Ability To Regenerate His Body

High-End Attacking Endeavor & Hawks

An advanced nomu and the pinnacle of villain science, High-End was able to regenerate his body from a molecular level. This necessitated that Endeavor incinerate his entire body in order to safely put down the monstrosity for good.

Though Zuko's bending is designed to conquer such threats, he does not have the raw potency in order to challenge him. Moreover, the prince is unable to fly, allowing the creature to define the terms of their fight and flee until it recovers when it is seriously injured.

2 COULD BEAT: Shinso Because He Requires A Verbal Response That Zuko May Not Give Him

Shinso mha

Shinso is able to dominate the minds of his opponents, rendering him potentially one of the most powerful characters in the My Hero Academia universe. However, his quirk comes with a catch; his foes must respond to him in order for a psychic link to be connected.

Because of Zuko's austere and contemplative nature, it's likely that he would not even consider responding to the hero if the two of them battled, especially after his temper had been salved by Uncle Iroh. With no other means of protecting himself, Shinso would quickly fall victim to the prince's unrivaled bending.

1 WOULD LOSE TO: Bakugo With His Superior Durability, Speed, & Firepower

My Hero Academia _ Katsuki Bakugo with an evil grin

The strongest student in Class 1-A and a natural warrior, Bakugo's skills rival Zuko's own. While the prince may have superior training and experience, Bakugo's durability, speed, and firepower far surpass his foe's.

This is demonstrated through his ability to survive a direct knee from All Might to the face, his usage of explosions to dodge dozens of enemy projectiles, and in his battle against Izuku Midoriya, where he unleashed enough firepower to detonate an entire street block. With virtually superhuman qualities, Bakugo's dominating attributes would overshadow what advantages Zuko has in finesse.

NEXT: My Hero Academia: 5 Avatar Characters Bakugo Could Defeat (& 5 He'd Lose To)