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The sheer amount of villains in the series makes it difficult to choose a favorite. However, it’s impossible to deny some of these rapscallions are a cut above the others. The following are not only among the most powerful but leave an impression as some of the most memorable personalities.
Updated November 3, 2022 by Suzail Ahmad: One Piece is one of the longest-running anime series. It is very consistent with its quality, which makes it a very good choice for a person who is new to anime. Along with its great heroes, the anime features a slew of villains.
Each arc of the anime features one or more villains, and most of them are given a chance to shine. While there is no shortage of antagonists in the series, not everyone manages to stand out, and those who do are blessed with ridiculous powers and amazing personas. So, here are some of the best One Piece villains.
19 Arlong
Affiliation: Arlong Pirates Bounty: 20,000,000
Arlong was the main antagonist of the Arlong Park arc. He used to be a member of the Fishman Pirates, but he left them and started his own pirate group. Arlong came to Cocoyashi Village and took over by force. He began extorting money from the villagers in exchange for keeping them alive.
Arlong was given a bounty of 20,000,000 berries, which was very low. The reason why his bounty was so low was that he had made a deal with the Marines, who did not report any of his activities. Arlong was a ruthless individual, who had a strong hatred toward humans, and he would never pass up an opportunity to torment them.
18 Kizaru
Affiliation: Marines Bounty: None
Endowed with the power of the Pika Pika no Mi, Kizaru is one of the three Marine Admirals. He was the second Admiral to be introduced in the series, and he made his debut during the Sabaody Archipelago arc. When he arrived at Sabaody, every pirate began running for their life.
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With the help of his devil fruit powers, Kizaru was easily able to defeat multiple members of the Worst Generation. Kizaru also fought against the Straw Hat Pirates and nearly killed all of them, but luckily, Rayleigh stepped in. Kizaru was also involved in the Paramount War, where he injured Whitebeard, Luffy, and Marco. He is yet to be involved in a serious fight after the time skip, but that will change soon as the anime enters the final saga.
17 Aokiji
Affiliation: Blackbeard Pirates Bounty: Unknown
Aokiji is a former Marine Admiral, and one of the major antagonists of the Marineford arc. Aokiji possesses the Hie Hie no Mi, a logia-type devil fruit that allows him to manipulate ice at will. The ability is very versatile, and it proved invaluable when he used it to save the Marines from the tidal waves created by Whitebeard.
During his first encounter with the Straw Hat Pirates, Aokiji defeated them single-handedly and without any problems. After the Summit War was over, Aokiji left the Marines and joined forces with the Blackbeard Pirates. He was also involved in the attack on Whole Cake Island, as he helped the Blackbeard Pirates to kidnap Charlotte Pudding.
16 Charlotte Cracker
Affiliation: Big Mom Pirates Bounty: 860,000,000
Charlotte Cracker was the first strong member of the Big Mom Pirates that Luffy fought during the Whole Cake Island arc. Luffy struggled to beat Cracker and required Nami’s assistance to take down the Sweet Commander.
Luffy complimented Cracker’s absurdly strong Armament Haki, which made his biscuit clones nigh unbreakable. Furthermore, Cracker was able to match Luffy’s speed in Gear Fourth quite easily. If Nami hadn’t helped Luffy, then the crew wouldn’t have been able to rescue Sanji.
15 Senor Pink
Affiliation: Donquixote Pirates Bounty: 58,000,000
Senor Pink holds a special place in the hearts of One Piece fans. While he might not have the evil charisma of his captain, Senor Pink had something else to make up for it— his hard-boiled attitude.
Senor Pink’s fight with Franky made him a fan favorite, and his actions in that fight endeared him to the community. He also had a grim backstory, which revealed why he dressed up like a baby. His devil fruit power allowed him to swim in solid material, and he used the power quite expertly throughout the series.
14 Vinsmoke Judge
Affiliation: Germa Kingdom Bounty: Unknown
Vinsmoke Judge is among the most inhumane characters in the series, a character that fans love to hate. He experimented on his own children by altering their lineage factor in the hope that they would awaken special powers. However, the experiments resulted in his children developing no emotions. He solely wanted to create children to use as weapons to raze entire battlefields.
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Judge also mistreated Sanji because the latter had emotions and wasn’t strong like his siblings. In the Whole Cake Island arc, Judge traded his own son’s life to gain Big Mom’s favor. He is by far one of the cruelest characters in the series.
13 Charlotte Katakuri
Affiliation: Big Mom Pirates Bounty: 1,057,000,000
He is one of the Sweet Commanders of the Big Mom Pirates. Before his fight against Luffy, Katakuri had an unbeaten record, which was extremely impressive. Katakuri ate the Mochi Mochi no Mi, which is a paramecia-type devil fruit, and it allows him to create and control mochi at will.
As an experienced fighter, Katakuri was able to use the Advanced versions of both Armament and Observation Haki. His Advanced Observation Haki allowed him to look into the future, and plan a counter accordingly. Katakuri used his powerful Haki and devil fruit ability to clobber Luffy.
12 Gecko Moria
Affiliation: Thriller Bark Pirates Bounty: 320,000,000
Gecko Moria was the main antagonist of the Thriller Bark arc. He used to be rivals with Kaido, one of the four Emperors. After suffering heavy casualties, Moria decided to make an army of zombies that would allow him to reach the very top.
Even though he wasn’t at the peak of his powers, Moria proved to be a nuisance for the Straw Hats. The entire crew had to join the fight when Moria was controlling Oars’ body. Imagine how great a threat he’d be at his full strength.
11 World Government
Affiliation: World Nobles Bounty: None
The World Government is one of the major enemies of the Straw Hats. They are led by Imu, who holds the highest authority. The World Government has been involved in many questionable incidents over the years, such as the Void Century and the Ohara Incident.
In order to stop anyone from learning about the true history of the world, the World Government has banned reading the Poneglyphs. This insinuates that they have committed many gruesome acts over the years.
10 Magellan
Affiliation: Impel Down Bounty: None
The former chief warden of Impel Down, Magellan, is one of the most fearsome fighters in the series. Endowed with the powers of Doku Doku no Mi, Magellan has complete control over all kinds of poison.
Magellan was feared by every inmate in Impel Down, because of his ability to manipulate poison. Magellan defeated Luffy in a very one-sided fight, and the latter would have been killed if not for Ivankov’s miraculous healing powers. He was also able to wipe out Blackbeard’s entire crew with his devil fruit power, but they were saved by Shiryu.
9 Rob Lucci
Affiliation: CP0 Bounty: None
Rob Lucci was the main antagonist of the Water 7 and Enies Lobby arcs. Lucci gained the reputation of being a cold-blooded killer among the Marines because of his ruthless attitude. At a very young age, Lucci killed 500 hostages without showing any remorse.
Lucci’s callous nature instilled fear into the hearts of his opponents and cemented his reputation as one of the strongest fighters in the World Government. His cruelty makes him one of the series’ strongest villains.
8 Enel
Affiliation: God’s Army Bounty: Unknown
God Enel took over Skypiea with the help of his powerful Goro Goro no Mi and his army. Enel was among the first characters who displayed the power of Mantra, or Observation Haki.
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He combined Observation Haki and the power of his devil fruit to keep a watch over everyone in Skypiea. This made the populace believe that Enel was really a god and was omnipresent. Luffy was incredibly lucky to have the devil fruit that is a natural counter to Enel’s lightning or the former’s journey of becoming the Pirate King would have been short-lived.
7 Hody Jones
Affiliation: New Fish-Man Pirates Bounty: Unknown
Hody Jones has flown under the radar of One Piece fans for far too long. He is not supposed to be the most powerful villain, and many viewers fail to understand this. Rather, he is meant to represent something far more important.
Hody Jones is a fishman who hates humans, and he is willing to go to any extreme to destroy mankind. His hatred towards humanity is so immense that he killed Otohime and caused the death of many others. His obnoxious ideals are what make him an incredible villain, even if his strength isn’t on par with some others.
6 Big Mom
Affiliation: Big Mom Pirates Bounty: 4,388,000,000
Charlotte Linlin aka Big Mom is the main antagonist of the Whole Cake Island arc. She managed to destroy Elbaf, the homeland of giants when she was just a child. She has the power of the Soru Soru no Mi, which allows her to steal the souls of others and transfer them to inanimate objects.
This ability allows her to create homies who can fight by her side. Big Mom’s entire crew consists of her children because she is not too trusting of others. Whilst enraged, Big Mom becomes a pitiless pirate who will even kill her children if they dare to stand in her way.
5 Kaido
Affiliation: Animal Kingdom Pirates Bounty: 4,611,100,000
Kaido is the main antagonist of the Wano arc. He took over the Land of Wano several decades ago and ruled it with Orochi. Kaido values strength above anything and he’s always looking for a good fight. Only a handful of characters have managed to hurt Kaido in a fight, which shows his insane resistance to Armament Haki.
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Kaido wiped out several members of the Worst Generation with relative ease, which shows his incredible power. He has beaten Luffy twice already and it is obvious that Luffy requires more help before he can take down Kaido.
4 Crocodile
Affiliation: Baroque Works Bounty: 81,000,000
To this day, Crocodile remains one of the few characters who defeated Luffy. Not to mention he managed to do so not once, but twice. Like Doflamingo, Crocodile managed to take over an entire nation without breaking a sweat.
Crocodile’s plan to destroy Alabasta was immaculate and it showed that he is more than just a talented fighter. Crocodile’s reputation is one of the key reasons why Doflamingo wanted the former to team up with him.
3 Blackbeard
Affiliation: Blackbeard Pirates Bounty: 2,247,600,000
Blackbeard is expected to be Luffy’s final opponent in the series. Despite his looks, Blackbeard is a very calculating individual who doesn’t take needless risks. He perfectly planned his rise to the status of a Yonko, which shows his intelligence. He’s the only character who possesses two devil fruits; Gura Gura no Mi, a paramecia-type devil fruit, and Yami Yami no Mi, a logia-type devil fruit.
Blackbeard has been directly or indirectly responsible for the deaths of Ace Whitebeard and hundreds of other innocent people. Boasting an astounding bounty of 2,247,600,000 berries, he is one of the most feared criminals in the world. No wonder World Government wants to get rid of him so badly.
2 Akainu
Affiliation: Marines Bounty: None
Akainu is popular within the One Piece community for all the wrong reasons. Despite being a Navy Admiral, Akainu shows no real interest in protecting the people of the world. He is a believer in Absolute Justice, and his utmost priority is to ensure that his philosophy prevails.
During the Buster Call on Ohara, Akainu casually destroyed an entire ship that was carrying the civilians of Ohara. At Marineford, Akainu manipulated Squard into stabbing Whitebeard, and later on, he killed Ace.
1 Donquixote Doflamingo
Affiliation: Donquixote Pirates Bounty: 340,000,000
It’s impossible for fans to not remember the former King of Dressrosa. His appearance at Punk Hazard sent shivers down the spine of the entire G-5. While Doflamingo is not the most powerful villain in One Piece, he is certainly the most wicked one.
Doflamingo has committed several crimes that are unthinkable for most people. He killed his father and his brother without showing any contrition. Doflamingo took over the country of Dressrosa by turning the entire populace against King Riku and crowned himself as the new king.
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