My Hero Academia has plenty of iconic villains, from the Hero Killer to All for One, and it's easy to see why hero society so desperately needs a Symbol of Peace. Some of the anime's villains are simply bad for the sake of being bad, however, others offer viewers more interesting personalities to unpack.
Two of the show's villains who are particularly fascinating are Shigaraki and Overhaul. This is especially true during the current season, because tensions are so high between the two of them — even if they’re reluctantly trying to find a way to work together. But when you pit them against one another, who makes for a better villain?
Here are 5 reasons Shigaraki is My Hero Academia's best villain (& 5 reasons that it's Overhaul).
10 It's Shigaraki: Because His Aspirations Are Bigger
Just as Deku intends to succeed All Might and become the next Symbol of Peace, Shigaraki intends to take the place of his mentor All for One -- a huge undertaking if there ever was one. He has plans to unite the villains of the My Hero Academia world and to put an end to hero society. That sort of makes him the villain equivalent of the Symbol of Peace, doesn’t it?
And while Overhaul also has the long game in mind, he’s mostly seeking glory for himself. Shigaraki, on the other hand, seems to see the bigger picture he’s working against — even if he hasn’t made much progress toward that goal yet.
9 It's Overhaul: Because He Has An Actual Plan
As Overhaul points out to Shigaraki during their first meeting, the League of Villains doesn't have much of a plan to overthrow hero society. Overhaul, on the other hand, seems to have an eye for strategy. He insists that he would have known how to use Stain, Muscular, and the rest of the League's pawns to achieve his ends -- and it's easy to believe him.
Just seeing how elaborately built the Shie Hassaikai's headquarters is demonstrates how much planning Overhaul really does. It's no wonder he's a force to be reckoned with; he's always anticipating his next move.
8 It's Shigaraki: Because He's More Relatable
Over the course of My Hero Academia, Shigaraki fails frequently. He's forced to grow as a leader in order to helm the League of Villains, and he's repeatedly pushed to reconsider the way he's doing things. It's almost like Shigaraki goes on his own hero's journey (villain's journey?) throughout the anime, and it's that learning process that makes him such an easy villain to relate to.
Watching Shigaraki struggle to understand what he's doing wrong and attempt to solve those problems almost makes viewers want to root for him. And that's the making of a complex villain.
7 It's Overhaul: Because You're Supposed To Hate The Villain
It could be argued that viewers aren't supposed to relate to a villain, but are meant to hate them instead. If that's the case, Overhaul is easily the better villain of My Hero Academia. Once you realize what he's doing to Eri, it's nearly impossible to find an ounce of sympathy for the guy.
On top of that, Overhaul just isn't given the same level of depth as Shigaraki. We don't see much of a backstory for him -- beyond his pleas to lead the Shie Hassaikai -- and he certainly doesn't have any meaningful relationships with any of the other characters.
6 It's Shigaraki: Because He's Loyal To His Followers (Sort Of)
When the League of Villains is first formed, Shigaraki doesn't appear to care much about who follows him. In fact, he refers to Toga as a brat, calls Dabi rude, and immediately dismisses them -- then tries to attack them.
As the anime and manga continue, however, Shigaraki develops bonds with the other members of the League. He becomes more dedicated to being their leader, and as he demonstrates when Overhaul kills Magne and attacks Compress, he's willing to fight to defend them if need be. That's a far cry from Overhaul.
5 It's Overhaul: Because His Followers Would Happily Die For Him
In direct opposition to Shigaraki, Overhaul clearly doesn't care for his followers, viewing them as pieces on his chess board and nothing more. When the confrontation with the heroes begins, Overhaul runs -- knowing that "his pawns" will hold them off, happy to die for him if need be.
It's not an admirable quality by any means, but this does demonstrate how much influence Overhaul has over the Shie Hassaikai. He inspires them in some capacity, even if it's through fear -- and that dedicated following is necessary if he's going to succeed as a villain.
4 It's Shigaraki: Because He’s The King Of Petty
Although Shigaraki's goal is to rid the world of heroes entirely, his focus is on one specific hero: All Might. And that obsession with All Might shifts to an obsession with Deku once he realizes that the boy is constantly in his way. Seriously, he even carries around a picture of the kid. Talk about petty.
Those who read the manga also know that Shigaraki isn’t going to forget Overhaul’s recent slights anytime soon. The guy goes to great lengths to get back at those he thinks have wronged him. And hey, we admire his dedication to being petty!
3 It's Overhaul: Because His Obsession With Filth Is Fascinating
Overhaul wears a plague mask and gloves because he's obsessed with keeping filth off of him. It's a fascinating quality for a villain, especially one who uses his quirk to destroy matter. As you might imagine, that involves cleaning up plenty of blood -- or having your followers do it for you.
His fear of “filth” adds an interesting layer to Overhaul. We know he won’t hold back from violence because of empathy, but he’ll certainly try to avoid it to avoid the bloody aftermath. (Of cours, this can also be used against him...)
2 It's Shigaraki: Because His Quirk Is Extremely Overpowered
Shigaraki's quirk enables him to decay whatever he touches, essentially turning his opponents to dust in an instant. It's a powerful ability that makes threatening people easy -- and it also allows Shigaraki to almost instantly defeat anyone he manages to get the jump on.
Before Overhaul appeared, Shigaraki definitely boasted the strongest quirk of the show’s villains — and probably among most of the heroes as well.
1 It's Overhaul: Because His Quirk Is Also Overpowered
It's impossible to say who has the better quirk between Overhaul and Shigaraki. While Shigaraki can turn whatever he touches to dust, Overhaul can control matter -- disassembling and reassembling anything (or anyone) he puts a hand on.
Having that level of power makes Overhaul nearly unbeatable. And if he’s capable of reassembling matter, he has a step up on Shigaraki; as far as we know, Shigaraki can’t reverse the effects of his quirk.