With superhero comics, the villains' plans are usually thwarted and they are promptly put in jail without much chance to learn the error of their ways. Of course, there are some exceptions, but if you want some great examples of villains evolving as characters and eventually changing sides, then anime is the place to look. One of the most common tropes of Shonen manga/anime and the medium as a whole is when the hero befriends a villain, giving them a second chance, despite all the horrible things they have done. That extension of friendship often leads the villain to go from being a bad guy to an anti-hero, to an ally and eventually to a full-blown hero. It's a wonderful trope that shows everyone deserves a second chance, that maybe their mistakes can't be undone but they can still try to be better.

So, just how many anime villains have been given a second chance? We can name 20 right off the bat, and that's not even all of them! Some of these villains committed unforgivable acts, but that's what makes them so interesting as characters; going through so much to actively become a better person, whether they like it or not. But who are the worst villains to learn the error of his ways? Who has gone from destroyers to protectors? The list is actually quite long, so we narrowed it down to 20 villains who become heroes for the world they live in, instead of trying to hurt others.

20 PICCOLO

Piccolo Jr. was born with all the memories and motivations of his father, King Piccolo, and as such he had every reason to seek revenge against Goku. But, after their fight, Piccolo just sort of went about his business for a few years, becoming an anti-hero by the time of Dragon Ball Z, helping to train Gohan for the arrival of the Saiyans.

As time went on, Piccolo became a full-blown hero, fighting against every villain that threatened the Earth. In fact, one of the things that marks Piccolo's full transition from villain to hero is how unforgiving he was of Vegeta's acts, refusing to wear battle armor because Vegeta was wearing it. Hypocritical, sure, but it showed just how much Piccolo has changed.

19 HIEI

Hiei had kind of a difficult upbringing; he was born as a male fire demon to a race of all female ice spirits, and due to being the extreme opposite of the place and people he was born to, he was cast out and raised by bandits. From there, things only got worse, and it's not hard to see why his moral compass tipped in the wrong direction.

But, after some initial clashing, Hiei's demonic intents slowly faded, and after saving Yusuke's life, it was clear that his villainous days were slowly but surely behind him as he went from an anti-hero into an ally of Yusuke.

18 GREED

This is a bit of a strange entry, since the Greed we met at the beginning of Fullmetal Alchemist is not exactly the same Greed we knew later on in the series. The original Greed was destroyed and Ling became the new Greed; but either way you look at it, both Greeds denounced their villainous ways... more or less.

The first Greed stopped serving his master's agenda, becoming a gang leader of sorts (not a good guy, but not part of the villain's plan). The second Greed quickly gave up on serving Father, then slowly stopped pining for power and eventually came to be an ally to the Elric brothers and their friends. He eventually gave his life for Ling, and the world, at the end.

17 IRON MAN FRANKY

franky with an arm coming out of his hand

When Franky's crew attacked Usopp and stole all the money he had, the Straw Hats promptly retaliated, destroying their base of operations. After learning what happened to his crew, Franky planned to get revenge on the Straw Hats, challenging Luffy to a duel, acting as an antagonist for the Water 7 Arc until he and the Straw Hats were eventually forced to work together.

This eventually led to Franky becoming an official member of the Straw Hat Pirates, acting as the Shipwright of the crew, helping to keep their ship running smoothly. This helped him to fulfill his dream of building a ship able to sail the entire ocean.

16 VIRAL

After the spiral king was defeated, humans came out from living underground and built cities on the lands that were previously not allowed to step foot on. But some wished to remain underground, though the government wouldn't allow it, and thus they were forced from their homes. Despite being a major antagonist previously, Viral helped to protect those who wished to remain in their underground homes, something that got him in trouble with the government.

Treated as a criminal, Viral was sentenced to be executed along with Simon, but as the threat of the anti-spirals grew, Viral became a key member of fighting for humanity, helping to pilot Gurren Lagann alongside Simon. Kamina's greatest rival eventually became Simon's greatest ally.

15 KAIBA

Kaiba from Yu-Gi-Oh Dark Side Of Dimensions

One of the worst rich kid bullies in all of anime has to be Seto Kaiba, a young genius who took over a company and pushed its success with his inventions, the Dueling Arena and the Duel Disk. For early parts of the Yu-Gi-Oh! series, Kaiba served as the main villain, kidnapping Yugi's grandfather in his first appearance, since he wanted his rare card.

Kaiba went on to do some pretty bad things, acting like a complete jerk and making very selfish and egotistical moves. But as time went on, he became less concerned with hurting others and more concerned with simply besting Yugi in a game. Even then, he admitted his rival was the king of games in the end.

14 UBITO UCHIHA

Tobi is Obito

Even if it was for a short amount of time, Ubito Uchiha managed to change sides and prove himself a hero in his final moments of life. Like any great villain, Ubito's evil ways were born out of tragedy, starting with his supposed demise, then followed by witnessing his best friend, Kakashi, destroy the girl he loved, Rin. Both events led him to fall victim to twisted ideals.

Ubito went on to form the Akatsuki clan, a group of evil ninjas that served as the antagonists for Naruto Shippuden. Ubtio acted as their leader and orchestrated most of the chaotic events that Naruto and friends faced in the series, eventually learning the truth about Rin and sacrificing himself for Kakashi and Naruto against Kaguya Ōtsutsuki.

13 ANDROIDS 17 & 18

dbz-androids-17-18

Androids 17 and 18 were built by Dr. Gero to take revenge on Goku, but they had other plans. After destroying their creator, they activated Android 16 and decided to challenge Goku, not to fulfill Dr. Gero's plan, but instead because they wanted to have some fun fighting him. Regardless of their reasons, Androids 17 and 18 served as the main villains of the Androids saga, but they wouldn't remain villains forever.

After being saved from being part of Cell, Androids 17 and 18 went on to live normal lives. In fact, 18 eventually married Krillin and had a daughter, while 17 started his own family, working as a park ranger. Both androids would also go on to fight in the Tournament of Power in Dragon Ball Super.

12 THE SABERTOOTH GUILD

a team of wizards from the sabertooth guild in the crocus colosseum

The Grand Magic Games is a tournament that brings together the greatest guilds to find out which wizards are the strongest in all of Fiore. Among the many guilds that entered, there was the Sabertooth Guild, which was once thought to be insignificant until a new master came and upped its reputation by recruiting two dragon slayers.

It was that same master who also turned them into a ruthless, evil Guild, one that was meant to destroy Fairy Tail. But, after their master was defeated and kicked out, Sabertooth formed their own path, becoming a guild that helped others instead of just seeking power.

11 13 COURT GUARD SQUAD

When Rukia was brought back to the Soul Society to be executed, Ichigo and his friends fought their way through almost the entirety of the 13 Court Guard Squad (also known as the Gotei 13) in order to rescue her. During this arc in the anime, the 13 Court Gaurd Squad was seen as the enemy, each fight looking like any other villain battle in Shonen anime.

But, let's not forget the fact that they were just doing their job, fighting intruders and keeping Soul Society safe, no matter how malicious they might seem. In fact, at the end of it all, the 13 Court Guard Squad ended up being an ally to Ichigo and friends in later story arcs.

10 CRONA

Crona is truly one of the most interesting villains in anime, they were raised by a witch named Medusa Gorgan, they had a weapon forcibly paired with them via injections of demon blood, and their introverted personality and broken down self-esteem made them susceptible to manipulation and madness. If all that wasn't crazy enough, Crona was also forgiven for their crimes and given the chance to attend DWMA as a student.

Crona was manipulated all of their life, which is why they were a villain to begin with, but once given the chance to change and live how they wanted to, the control that Medusa and Ragnarok (their built-in demon weapon) had on them faded away, and they become one of the good guys.

9 SATSUKI KIRYŪIN & THE STUDENT COUNCIL

The first arc of Trigger's Kill La Kill focused on Ryuko's fight against the Student Council of Honnōji Academy, including the ruler herself, Satsuki Kiryūin. Joining her were Ira Gamagōri, the Disciplinary Committee Chair, Uzu Sanageyama, the Athletic Committee Chair, Nonon Jakuzure, the Non-Athletic Committee Chair and Hōka Inumuta, the Information and Strategy Committee Chair.

Ryuko had to fight each and every one of these villains, not knowing that after the true villain was revealed, her former enemies would become her greatest allies in the fight for man-kind. In fact, Satsuki ended up snapping Ryuko out of the control of the Life Fibers.

8 SCAR

Scar FullMetal Alchemist

As one of the few survivors of the Ishvallan war, Scar was justifiably angry at the Amestrian government, especially the State Alchemists who were used as human weapons to decimate his land and people. As a form of revenge, Scar targeted and took out State Alchemists one by one, eventually learning that there was something deeper and darker going on with the loss of his people.

As it turned out, Scar's brother was close to figuring out the great Amestrian conspiracy, that the country was meant to create a philosopher's stone, and once Scar learned, he attempted to stop Alchemy from harming more people by allying himself with the Alchemists he once though to be sinners and destroyers.

7 HISOKA MOROW

Hisoka from Hunter X Hunter

Hisoka is sort of an outlier on this list, since his alliance is more circumstantial than anything. Originally part of the Phantom Troupe, Hisoka became known as a Grim Reaper, looking for strong opponents to fight, often sparing those whose power he respects. This was the case when he fought Gon Freecs, whom he ended up fighting alongside from time to time.

Though he didn't fully denounce his villainous ways, Hisoka has, in a way, become an ally to Gon and Killua in that they can sometimes count on him in certain situations. It's not a full redemption, for sure, but we're going to count it.

6 GAARA

Gaara is an interesting villain, since he, like Naruto, had a tailed demon sealed within him, leading the people of his village to fear and hate him. Lashing out, Gaara destroyed anyone who came across his path, almost permanently injuring Rock Lee during the Chunin Exams. After fighting against Naruto, Gaara saw that his fellow demon vessel found strength in the friendships he formed; something that he sought to emulate.

Gaara then became the fifth Kazekage of the village hidden in the sand, bettering his ways. Thus, he began protecting the village that once feared the demon presence within him, taking inspiration from Naruto's example.

5 KEN ICHIJOUJI

Anime Villain Heroes Ken Digimon Emperor Digimon Adventure

Who else remembers waking up early to catch new episodes of Digimon Season 2? While the first season was classic among a certain crowd, the second season managed to makes things a bit more interesting. Part of that interest coming from the antagonist: the Digimon Emperor. The Digimon Emperor used dark methods to control Digimon and turn them evil, incorporating them into his malicious plans.

But as time went on, The Digimon Emperor -- real name Ken Ichijouji -- experienced amnesia, forgetting his acts as the Digimon Emperor, eventually attempting to atone for his actions as a villain and joining the other Digidestined in their adventures and fight for the digital world.

4 THE SPIRAL KING

Sometimes evil is a relative term or idea; sometimes it's not about good or bad, but about achieving a goal or attempting to do something for the sake of the future. But it can end up leading to the fall of your own humanity and the destruction of the good in your heart. This was somewhat the case for The Spiral King, whose original intention behind pushing humans underground was to shield them from the Anti-Spirals, who planned to destroy humanity once their population reached a certain height.

In his original form, The Spiral King was eventually defeated, but he was brought back as a disembodied head that helped to direct the space expeditions of team Dai Gurren as they fought against the Anti-Spirals.

3 GAJEEL

Gajeel from Fairy Tail.

Gajeel Redfox was originally part of the Phantom Lord Guild, a particularly malicious group that sought to take out Fairy Tail, but after the guild was defeated, his rivalry with Fairy Tail's resident Dragon Slayer, Natsu, became a bit more friendly as he joined their ranks and become one of their strongest members.

By the end of Fairy Tail, Gajeel spent more time as a hero than a villain, which went to show that his evil intents were really just extensions of his previous guild alliance. Once he became a member of Fairy Tail, he was fighting on the side of the angels.

2 OROCHIMARU

Human experiments and stealing the bodies of those younger than him so he can live forever -- together, this sounds like something that would, in most cases, be seen as unforgivable. And yet, Orochimaru was eventually forgiven for his heinous acts, even by the very people he tried to experiment on.

Orochimaru served as the main antagonist for a large part of Naruto, and yet he was seen drinking amongst the very people who might have feared the mention of his name by the end of the series. Guess anime characters have a lot more room for forgiveness... especially shinobi!

1 VEGETA

At last we come to perhaps the most well known villain-turned-hero in all of anime: Vegeta. Vegeta came to Earth after hearing word about the Dragon Balls, hoping that he could use them to gain immortality. But, Goku stopped him in his evil plots, going so far as to spare the villain. This kindness eventually led Vegeta to turn from a villain to an anti-hero, to a hero and father.

Vegeta's character arc is one of the most interesting and dynamic in all of Dragon Ball, since he went from wanting to destroy Earth to protecting it as his home. Vegeta actively tried to be a better person, even if it went against everything he was taught as a member of a proud warrior race.