JoJo's Bizarre Adventure has exciting villains to rival the lovable main characters, and the first supervillain to appear is the legendary Dio Brando, the orphaned blond boy who schemed to tear down the Joestar family. He was revived in 1987 and gained a Stand, The World, and dreamed of conquering the globe. He also recruited more than a few minions along the way and set up his HQ in Cairo, Egypt.

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Cool villains need to be crafty schemers so they can set the story in motion, and indeed, DIO worked hard to outpace the Stardust Crusaders heroes and evade capture until the very end. There are some characters in the anime world who could outsmart him, such as tracking him down or finding a way around his Stand's abilities, while other characters don't have the wits to outfox DIO at all.

10 CAN OUTSMART HIM: Bruno Bucciarati

Anime JoJo Golden Wind Bruno Bucciarati Salute

Bruno Bucciarati is a "gangstar" on the streets of Italy circa 2001, and he is the one who recruited Giorno Giovanna in the fight against the boss, Diavolo. From the very start, Bruno has been crafty and street-wise, able to outpace his enemies and keep tabs on their movements.

Bruno's quick wits allowed him to evade capture by the boss, and if he can dodge a paranoid mob boss, then he could handle DIO, too, who was far more arrogant and blunter in his method. Bruno would track down and face DIO before long.

9 CAN'T OUTSMART HIM: Natsu Dragneel

Natsu Fairy Tail Fire Dragon Slayer Magic

Natsu Dragneel is a shonen protagonist in many classic ways, from his "never give up" attitude to his fierce loyalty to his friends and guildmates and his remarkable courage in the face of overwhelming odds. He is the Fire Dragon Slayer, relying on his blistering magic and his friends' faith in him to survive battles with evil.

However, Natsu is also a classic shonen "lovable oaf" type, and while he's not a complete fool, he's never asked to come up with battle plans or campaign strategies, and for good reason. He often acts on impulse or emotion, and there's no way could he track down DIO or evade DIO's traps and ambushes. He's too blunt.

8 CAN OUTSMART HIM: Colonel Roy Mustang (Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood)

roy mustang fullmetal alchemist

Colonel Roy Mustang is a fire user, like Natsu, but that doesn't mean that they're similar in other regards. Roy Mustang's flame alchemy can be highly precise, and Roy is also precise on paper. He is ambitious, and finally achieved his dream of becoming the ruler of Amestris.

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In addition, Roy is quick on the uptake and never needs to be told anything twice. He easily caught on to Riza Hawkeye's code message about Selim Bradley/Pride, and he carefully maneuvered his allies, from Riza to Furey, to ensure his rise to prominence.

7 CAN'T OUTSMART HIM: Tamaki Kotatsu (Fire Force)

Tamaki Kotatsu in Fire Force.

Like Natsu and Roy, Tamaki Kotatsu is a wielder of flames, and she is a fire soldier who transferred from the 1st company to the 8th. She is a quick, agile fire soldier who relies on her pink flames and cat-like moves to get the edge on her enemies.

Tamaki is a professional, and she is also training to become a Sister, like Iris. That's impressive, but Tamaki is a bit gullible at times, and she's not the type to lay down elaborate schemes or orchestrate a campaign. She couldn't lead a team to find DIO and have any hope of beating him.

6 CAN OUTSMART HIM: Momo Yaoyorozu (My Hero Academia)

Momo in My Hero Academia

A genius who got into U.A. through recommendations, Momo Yaoyorozu is a trainee hero who can use her sky-high IQ and her Quirk to create fully functional items from her skin, such as catapults, metal alloys, stereos, gas masks, and more. She can really think on her feet.

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Momo suffered confidence issues at some point, but she got over that issue and devised a brilliant battle plan to capture her teacher, Shota Aizawa, in mock combat. Also, she helped her rogue team track down the League of Villains to rescue Katsuki Bakugo.

5 CAN'T OUTSMART HIM: King (The Seven Deadly Sins)

King as a child in The Seven Deadly Sins.

King is indeed the king of the fairy people of Britannia, though he has to keep working hard to prove himself worthy of the fae throne. In the meantime, he is a loyal friend of Meliodas, a fellow Sin, and he can summon plants in battle, not to mention weapons (such as his spear).

King is powerful in combat, but he's not terribly crafty, and he's never the one who comes up with elaborate battle strategies, neither could he lead an investigation team to find DIO and avoid DIO's traps. King, despite his name, is more of a follower.

4 CAN OUTSMART HIM: Sokka

Sokka strategy avatar

Although Sokka of the Water Tribe has no eye for art, he is a gifted tactician who engineered many of the heroes' best plans against the Fire Nation. He was crafty enough to devise the invasion of the black sun (a solar eclipse), and he kept the avatar's team together while they journeyed across the world, by forming a schedule and checking for Fire Nation patrols.

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Sokka is cautious, detail-oriented, and resourceful, and if anything is amiss, he will spot it before long. He could definitely lead a team to track down DIO and corner him, though actually defeating DIO in battle must fall to someone else. A boomerang can't beat The World.

3 CAN'T OUTSMART HIM: Kazuma Sato (Konosuba)

Kazuma Sato screaming in fear in Konosuba

This is the face that Kazuma Sato would make if he was asked to track down DIO and defeat him. Already, Kazuma is struggling to find and defeat the demon king, and he's really struggling to assemble a competent adventurer team that can turn a decent profit when undertaking assignments.

Kazuma is arguably the most practical and sensible person on his squad, but that's saying very little when compared to the bratty Aqua and the self-absorbed Megumin. Kazuma would be totally lost if he were assigned to find DIO, and he'd be in trouble if DIO lured him into a trap.

2 CAN OUTSMART HIM: Shikamaru Nara (Naruto)

Young Shikamaru looking somewhere.

Shikamaru Nara, a Leaf Village ninja, ranks among the most gifted tacticians and strategists in the entire world of shonen anime. He can also use shadow jutsu to control people, and he can be crafty and resourceful when it comes to ambushing people with his shadows. No one ever sees it coming.

Meanwhile, Shikamaru played games of shogi with Azuma and demonstrated an IQ of over 200, then he proved it again by forming one brilliant battle plan after another. Nothing escapes his notice, and he'd piece together DIO's plan and find him before long. He'd also deftly avoid any traps or ambushes that DIO's minions would try to spring on him.

1 CAN'T OUTSMART HIM: Touta Matsuda (Death Note)

matsuda smiling death note

Touta Matsuda is a police officer, and he bravely volunteered to help the super-detective L find and arrest Kira, no matter what it took. Matsuda's heart was in the right place, but in practice, he's short-sighted and gets distracted easily. He's also easily flustered and sidetracked.

During the Kira investigation, Matsuda did stumble upon a few leads, such as when he happened upon Higuchi's Kira team and thus pointed L in the right direction. But that was little more than a fluke; otherwise, he'd need someone much more competent on the job, and Matsu would follow orders, rather than dish them out.

NEXT: 5 Reasons Why DIO is the Best JoJo Villain (& 5 Reasons Why It is Funny Valentine)