What’s up, everyone. Today, I’ll be ranking the best villains in One Piece. However, I will only be including the major antagonists from each arc/saga. Also, this is not a ranking of who is the strongest. I’ll mostly be looking at how threatening they are to the world and how well written their character truly is. I’m sure some of these spots will surprise, so let’s just jump to number 20 on this list!
20. Foxy the Silver Fox
Story Summary:
Starting this list is Foxy from the Long Ring Long Land arc. Upon meeting the Straw Hats, he challenges them to a Davy Back Fight. In these games, they play a series of different challenges. Instead of bidding for treasure, they bid their own crewmates. The winner then selects who they want. Foxy, being the cunning fox that he is, takes Tony Tony Chopper and Nico Robin from the Straw Hats. Eventually Monkey D. Luffy wins back Chopper and Robin and defeats Foxy in a duel, ending the Davy Back Fight.
My Thoughts:
To preface, I don’t think Foxy is a bad character. I actually like him as a whole. However, as a villain, he definitely is the worst in One Piece. To be fair, Eiichiro Oda made the Long Ring Long Land arc to be more low-stakes and fun. He achieved just that. By having Foxy be this funny and ridiculous villain, Oda never gave Foxy the chance to be in the run for the best villain.
All in all, Foxy is a fun and wacky villain but never really proves to be a challenge or even make any sort of blip on the One Piece world.
19. Alvida
Story Summary:
The very first major antagonist lands as the second worst major One Piece villain. Alvida was introduced during the Romance Dawn arc where her purpose is to basically showcase the main character, Monkey D. Luffy. Her story goes like this. Alvida is the captain of the Alvida Pirates and is a rather cruel captain. For instance, she has a chore boy, Koby, and she treats him like crap, which then Luffy learns about. Then, Luffy beats up Alvida and beckons Koby to become stronger and follow his dream to become a marine. That’s about it for her story.
My Thoughts:
Just like most East Blue villains, she is just evil because the story needs someone to show us Luffy’s ideals as a pirate. She is quite bland, but she is still unique enough to at least be memorable in the story. Even later on in the story she doesn’t really amount to anything other than being a member of the Cross Guild. I give her the slight edge over Foxy because her treatment of Koby at least gives Luffy a genuine injustice to confront, whereas Foxy is ultimately played more for laughs.
18. Kuro
Story Summary:
Next up is Kuro of the Black Cat Pirates. After he faked his death to escape the Marines, Kuro pretends to be Kaya’s caretaker under the name of Klahadore. His whole plan was to wait until Kaya was old enough to take her wealth. In order to do this, Kuro planned a pirate raid (using his own crew) to kill Kaya and make it seem like he had nothing to do with it. I mean, it would have worked out had Monkey D. Luffy not come out of nowhere at the right place and right time. In the end, Kuro ends up wasting 3 years and fleeing Syrup Village.
My Thoughts:
Let’s start with the good. He is absolutely despicable and intelligent. That’s about it. Did I hate him? Yes. But did he serve a purpose to the story beyond what happens in Syrup Village? Not really. The only thing he did was being the catalyst for the events of Syrup Village to get Luffy and the Straw Hats their first ship, the Going Merry. Other than that, he didn’t amount to much in the story at all or even challenge any sort of ideology. Kuro just wanted to exploit someone and live quietly after that, which does actually portray the real world.
Overall, he isn’t a terrible villain; just when compared to other main villains in One Piece, he just doesn’t compare.
17. Don Krieg
Story Summary:
Ah, the goat, Don freaking Krieg, one of the strongest and best villains in One Piece. During the Baratie Arc, Krieg shows up at the floating restaurant all battered up and starved after being chased out of the Grand Line. So, Sanji cooks him up a nice meal, and Krieg repays his thanks by exclaiming he will be back with his crew to take Baratie. Soon after, Dracule Mihawk, the warlord who chased Krieg out, destroys his grand fleet in one slash. After that, Krieg goes on a rampage where he is defeated by none other than Monkey D. Luffy.
My Thoughts:
I’ve mentioned it before, and I’ll say it again. I do believe Krieg’s initial introduction was rather threatening. He had this massive army and even reached the Grand Line. At the time of the show, the Grand Line was repeatedly said to be super dangerous, and no one leaves alive, so this feat actually seemed impressive. However, looking back at it now, Krieg was a complete joke. He was just a bad guy to give some challenge to Luffy and introduce us to the dangers of the Grand Line. Almost any type of character could fit his position, and the story would not change.
16. Axe-Hand Morgan
Story Summary:
Ok, now we are starting to get to the villains that actually caused some damage to the greater good. Morgan, a former Marine captain, was the lead man in charge of the Marine base in Shells Town. Here, we saw his corrupt moral values affect the citizens of Shells Town when some of his Marines were about to assault Rika, a little girl. Luckily, Roronoa Zoro was there to prevent that. This led to Zoro being accused of a crime and strung up in front of the base yard for several days, promised to be let go after a one-month deal. In the end, Luffy saves Zoro, and together they defeat Morgan.
My Thoughts:
Let’s call a spade a spade, Morgan was a complete asshole. He treated his men and even his own son, Helmeppo, like dogs. Because of Morgan, Shells Town was run with abuse of power. The Marines did whatever they liked and got away with it because they are part of the World Government. Eventually, when we see Morgan, it all made sense what was going on, and it established to us viewers that even Marines can be more evil than pirates. While Morgan didn’t kill any citizens, he did cause harm and imprisoned anyone who defied him.
15. Buggy the Clown
Story Summary:
Buggy, one of my all-time favorite One Piece characters, lands only at number 15 as one of the best One Piece villains. During Orange Town, Monkey D. Luffy, Nami, and Roronoa Zoro encounter Buggy the Clown, who has claimed the town in his name. Buggy ransacked the town, forced the citizens to flee, and held them as his own prisoners. On top of this, he damages Luffy’s Straw Hat, which angers Luffy. The results of Buggy’s actions cause Luffy to beat him up and launch him off the island, ending Buggy’s tyranny over Orange Town.
My Thoughts:
Similarly to Foxy, Buggy isn’t THAT great of a villain during the events of Orange Town. However, he is better than every major villain before him because of how harmful he was to the people of Orange Town. In fear of getting blown up over Buggy’s Buggy Balls, the people have to resort to living in camps away from their homes. While he isn’t killing anyone, eventually they most likely would have without the aid of Luffy and Zoro. Even though Buggy is very entertaining, his role as a villain wasn’t terrible, but it also wasn’t great. The best East Blue Villain on the list so far.
14. Hody Jones
Story Summary:
Now we are getting to a place where villains are much more interesting and complex. Hody Jones is a Fish-Man who grew up in an environment that embodied Arlong’s desire to destroy all humans. As he grew up, this resentment towards humans grew stronger to the point where he would actively harm his own people who want peace with humans. Otohime, the Queen of Fish-Man Island, was an advocate for peace between humans and fishman. This put a target on her back.
Eventually, Hody Jones murders the queen, blames the humans, and instills fear of humans into the hearts of the Ryugu Kingdom. A few years after Otohime’s death, Hody Jones decides it’s time to overthrow the kingdom, destroy the island, and kill the leaders of the world. Obviously, our rubber boy, Monkey D. Luffy, saves the day and defeats Hody.
My Thoughts:
There’s a lot to unpack here. What makes Hody a great villain is his hold on the Fishman and their thoughts. He not only killed the Queen, but he actively set back the view in which humans and fishmen see each other by several years. So far in this list, it is the worst thing a villain has done. Who knows how many Arlongs or Hody Jones this event could have spawned.
However, you can just feel something in his character to be lacking. There isn’t really a motivation behind his doing. He was told all these things by Arlong. Like, that’s it (it’s definitely a tragic past and speaks to the real world). Sure, the ambition was there and stronger than Arlong’s, but his overall character was just a bit bare. Also, he just wasn’t a threat to Luffy and the Straw Hats. All the drugs in the world couldn’t help Hody defeat them.
13. Wapol
Story Summary:
Wapol, the king of Drum Kingdom and user of the Munch-Munch fruit, is another mid-tier villain in One Piece. For years, he ruled over Drum Island with no care for his people. The king would hoard all 20 of the best doctors on the island for himself. To get treatment, citizens would have to fork over basically their life savings. If they sought other ways of treatment, their punishment would be imprisonment or even execution.
Then, when the Blackbeard Pirates arrived to raid Drum Kingdom, Wapol fled, which left his kingdom in despair. Eventually, Wapol made his way back to rule over the Drum citizens after Blackbeard left. There, Wapol continued his tyrannical reign until the Straw Hats’ arrival. However, he still managed to find another kingdom, the Evil Black Drum Kingdom (what a name by the GOAT).
My Thoughts:
This guy is truly a POS. By the end of the arc, you’re definitely going to find yourself hating and being annoyed by Wapol. Everything about him is insufferable. His personality and ruling style is just so wrong in so many ways. The man is just super greedy.
While he isn’t an exact foil to Monkey D. Luffy, he does show the exact opposite of what it means to be a ruler when compared to Princess Nefetari Vivi and King Nefetari Cobra. What makes me place him higher than those before him is the amount of time he causes suffering to all of Drum Island. Somehow, he’s even become king again on another island! That’s just ridiculous. While not one of the best villains, still a great showing for him.
12. Caesar Clown
Story Summary:
Of the two clowns on this list, Caesar Clown is the better one. Introduced during Punk Hazard, we quickly learn of Caesar’s maniacal background. Years ago, he worked with the World Government on Punk Hazard. There, he was fired by the genius Vegapunk because of his illegal creations. In retaliation, Caesar detonated one of his chemical weapons, which filled Punk Hazard with toxic gas.
Going forward a few years, Caesar is now working for Donquixote Doflamingo to create SMILE Fruits and other weapons of war. Making his way back to Punk Hazard, Caesar created a chemical called SAD and distributed it to Dressrosa. On top of that, he also experimented on kids to try and create giants through scientific means. Finally, Monkey D. Luffy defeats Caesar, and Trafalgar Law stops the production of SAD.
My Thoughts:
Ultimately, Caesar Clown is a crazy mastermind who puts his pride and ego in front while taking advantage of anyone to become the “greatest” scientist ever. The man is clearly out of his mind. I mean, how many people has he killed or indirectly killed because of Smiley, Shinokuni (his chemical weapon), and other weapons he made by using his Gas-Gas Fruit? It has to be at least a couple thousand.
The only thing keeping him on the lower half of this list is that to Luffy, Caesar wasn’t a threat at all. Yes, he has done basically all of the worst crimes, but he isn’t there to be an opposition to Luffy. Caesar just happens to be in the way of bigger and stronger villains.
11. Saint Jaygarcia Saturn
Story Summary:
The most recent villain is next up on the list. Saint Jaygarcia Saturn was revealed extremely early in One Piece as one of the Five Elders. It wasn’t until Egghead Island that his story finally concluded. During the arc, Saturn came to an end A LOT of things. Vegapunk, Bonney, and Luffy were all targets for the World Government. For Saturn, Bonney had to go after she learned about his dark experiments.
Also, Saturn needed to make sure Vegapunk didn’t leak any World Government secrets. While he and Kizaru did succeed in taking out Vegapunk, the broadcast went through. Following that, Saturn was unable to end Luffy and Bonney’s journey. In the end, Saturn was executed by Imu because of how much failure was brought upon the World Government.
My Thoughts:
The payoff reveal of the Five Elders and their powers was finally here. At first, Saturn was super scary. Unless you have crazy Haki, this guy is basically invincible. So, the threat was definitely there. Also, his backstory on experimenting on Jewelry Bonney and Bartholomew Kuma was disgusting. He caused the Sapphire Scale illness for both Bonney and her mom, Ginny. Then, the guy uses Kuma for his own military experiments, which makes Kuma lose his memories.
While he does manage to do all this, his showing on Egghead Island was a bit of a letdown. The guy was a literal punching bag, and didn’t accomplish a single thing. In fact, Saturn completely failed to stop Vegapunk’s broadcasting AND let the Straw Hats escape. I do think he’s a good villain, but his failures hold him back from being among the best villains.
10. Gecko Moria
Story Summary:
Breaking into the Top 10 worst villains in One Piece is Gecko Moria, captain of the Thriller Bark Pirates. During his prime, Moria was seen to rival Kaido. Unfortunately, the man just lost it all: the fight, his crew (originally the Gecko Pirates), and his will. After the defeat, he eventually became a Warlord of the Sea, where he terrorized the Florian Triangle for about a decade. There, he would steal people’s shadows, including Brook the Soul King, using his Paramecia Devil Fruit, the Shadow-Shadow Fruit.
Just like every major villain, aside from Axe-Hand Morgan, Monkey D. Luffy saves the day, restoring Brook’s shadow to his body. Following his defeat, Moria was sent to Marineford to help fight the Whitebeard Pirates. In the current timeline, the Shadow Man is locked up on Fullalead, Blackbeard’s island.
My Thoughts:
The more you analyze Gecko Moria, the more you realize the complexity of his character. When he was first introduced, he came off lazy and arrogant. He felt like he didn’t have to try much to get rid of Luffy and the Straw Hats. To be honest, Moria did have the upper hand until Luffy went nightmare mode. While Moria is a bit lazy and arrogant, Oda shows us how much he cares and values his crew. His travel to Fullalead to find Absolum is not characteristic of any pirate aside from Luffy and Whitebeard.
Also, we learned of his unfortunate past and how he lost his original crew to Kaido. Back then, Moria actually came off as capable and as promising as Luffy. That loss to Kaido sent him spiraling to where he is today. It’s an interesting showcase because Moria’s story mirrors Luffy in a lot of ways. Truly an underrated villain in One Piece.
9. Arlong
Story Summary:
Originally from Fish Man Island, Arlong makes his way to the East Blue to begin his ultimate goal: conquer the humans and show the superiority of the fish men. He quickly took over the Conomi Islands where Nami’s home village of Cocoyashi was. There, he set up a base of operations where he took over that entire region and enslaved several human-populated towns. As for his story with Nami, Arlong murders her mom, Bellemiere. After which, he promised Nami to free Cocoyashi Village if she brings him 100 million Berries. In the meantime, she would have to be his cartographer.
Eventually, she is able to gather the huge fee only to be caught by Nezumi, a Marine working with Arlong. Finally, she turns to Luffy and the crew and asks for help. They quickly deal with Arlong and his crew, saving the island. Later, we get a bit more history of Arlong and see how he became such a monster. As a kid, he was looked down upon by humans and treated awfully. His spiral truly began when Fisher Tiger, captain of the Sun Pirates, was betrayed and killed by the humans. This event caused him to create the Fish Man Pirates and terrorize the seas.
My Thoughts:
Having Arlong this high in the list shows Oda’s early brilliance as a writer. Considering back then, a lot of the villains just did not live up as great characters. Arlong was the first to actually feel very threatening and had a ruthless dictatorship that was established several years ago. None of the East Blue villains even came close to Arlong. Also, the backstory added a bit more nuance to his character. During the Arlong Park arc, it was obvious his hate for humans was grand, but we never knew the full extent to it.
His motives weren’t exactly developed, and you can only guess at his past. The backstory completely changed my perspective on Arlong. Seeing him as a kid made me understand why he came to be so ruthless. He’s not evil just to be evil. He was melded into a monster because of his traumatic experiences, which unfortunately led him to a destructive path. To me, it’s interesting how his path could have gone differently because Jinbe experiences similar things. Yet, Jinbe took a completely different route. One filled with hope and mending, while Arlong turned his back on that.
8. Rob Lucci
Story Summary:
Up next is the dark justice marine, Rob Lucci. First introduced to us as a shipwright for Galley-La Company, Rob Lucci is shown to be a strong and calculating man. Later it is revealed he is the lead fighter of CP9. Utilizing his Cat-Cat Fruit Model Leopard, he quickly defeats Luffy in Water 7 and takes his crew member, Nico Robin, to Enies Lobby. After a long grind, Lucci is finally defeated by Luffy. We also learn during the Enies Lobby Saga of Lucci’s past. As a kid, he was brutally trained to be a tool for the World Government.
Then, following the timeskip, Lucci meets Luffy once again on Egghead Island. This time he’s under Cipher Pol 0, the ultimate intelligence force for the World Government. Betraying the orders of the World Leaders, Lucci engages in battle with Luffy and later Zoro. While Lucci has become stronger, the Straw Hats have become stronger. Eventually, Lucci acknowledges the pirates have surpassed him, leaving the readers time to think about what happens next in his story.
My Thoughts:
To me, Lucci is one of my favorite villains. His reveal as being the leader of CP9 was one of the coolest things. Then, we see this whole time he’s just a weapon for the World Government. His motive is killing and bloodlust through legal means, but there are moments where he acts out of character. At times, Lucci will show genuine care for his team and even saves Kaku from being executed.
While he is brainwashed to think pirates are evil and the Celestial Dragons are gods, I do believe that he will eventually turn his back on the World Government. Will it be a huge moment? Most likely not. However, I hope there will be a major turning point for his character. Also, he truly was a huge threat to Luffy and the Straw Hats during Enies Lobby. Lucci could have been the outright victor on another day. To me, it was truly an upset by the underdog in their first meeting. Anyway, Rob Lucci might not be the best villain, but there is something there that is so intriguing.
7. Kaido
Story Summary:
I bet I’ll get a lot of hate for this, but next on the list is Kaido, the captain of the Beast Pirates. As a kid, Kaido spent most of his time fighting. He was an orphan turned warrior by the age of 10 and was by far the strongest in the Vodka Kingdom. Long story short, Kaido was eventually captured by the Marines and then escaped, finding a new home with the Rocks Pirates.
After the Rocks Pirates disbanded following the God Valley incident, Kaido spent his time conquering Wano, turning it into a hellish island. He teamed up with Orochi to take over and kill Kozuki Oden, the daimyo of Wano. Kaido then created weapon factories and enslaved the citizens of Wano. Once Monkey D. Luffy came to Wano, his whole plan fell into pieces. Luffy liberated the people of Wano by defeating Kaido, thus returning the land back to the Kozuki family under Momonosuke, Oden’s son.
My Thoughts:
I think Kaido had a lot of potential when he was first revealed. Not that he isn’t a good villain but he definitely falters from those ahead of him on this list. His whole presence was just for hype aura moments. I mean, Oda tried to write something deeper for him, but it never went anywhere. Kaido’s biggest motivation was to create a massive war and die gloriously in it. It does make sense for Kaido considering all he knew in life was fighting. I will say he was quite threatening leading up to the climax on Onigashima, and he did terrorize the people of Wano for a long period of time.
I want to like Kaido more, but I have to blame the writing on this one. Overall, it just feels like a mess trying to understand him as a whole. We were built up for greatness and expected a deep character background. Instead, Kaido had too many interesting ideas with almost none of them connecting to anything. I love the hype monster that he is, but I can’t help but wish we got a bit more as far as villains go.
6. Sakazuki
Story Summary:
Sakazuki, the current Fleet Admiral of the Marines, is up next. His story can be split up into three separate moments so far. The first would be his involvement in the Ohara incident. As a Vice Admiral, Sakazuki helped execute the Buster Call, which destroyed the island and all of its knowledge. His next moment was during the Marineford War. Again, Sakazuki instilled his Absolute Justice by nearly killing Whitebeard and actually killing Portgas D. Ace.
Finally, his recent event happened during the timeskip, which was his fight with Kuzan. The winner of that fight became the Fleet Admiral, and it was, spoiler alert, Sakazuki who won. As for now, his story is left unfinished, but there is definitely more to come.
My Thoughts:
As a long-time hater of Sakazuki, you have to admit that he does his job as a villain very well. While we don’t know how many towns or islands he has eradicated, we do know that it happened once, which is enough to make me think he would do it again in a heartbeat. Sakazuki was also involved in the two biggest deaths in One Piece so far. Killing a notable character is not something a One Piece villain does often.
That’s where he shines the most as a villain. Time and time again, he succeeds and pushes his agenda of defeating all the pirates. Unfortunately, I can’t place him much higher because his story is not complete. In the future, I can definitely see Sakazuki as a top three villain. Because when you hate villains, that’s when you know that character is well written.
5. Crocodile
Story Summary:
Now for the top 5 villains. Crocodile is the former leader of the Baroque Works and one of the current de facto leaders of Cross Guild. First introduced to us as Mr. 0, Crocodile planned an elaborate takeover of Alabasta, Vivi’s homeland. He tactically spent years building trust with the citizens there by taking out brutal pirates. In addition, Crocodile used Dance Powder, which caused the island to dry up.
Over several years of this, the continuous droughts caused people to grow skeptical of King Cobra. This allowed Crocodile to swoop in and act as the hero. Eventually, a rebellion was staged, and the fight for the throne ensued. As per usual, our true hero, Monkey D. Luffy, was able to prevent the coup and defeated Crocodile.
My Thoughts:
Looking back at it, Crocodile ranks as one of the most genius villains. His plan to slowly create distrust of the Alabasta Kingdom was like a poison with no cure. Slowly over time, he grew his own criminal organization while weeding out his opposition. The purpose was to find Pluton, which he gained intel of from his experience before Alabasta. And he tactically used Nico Robin, the only person left alive who could decipher the Poneglyphs.
With her help, he felt like it was only a matter of time before he uncovered one of the three ancient weapons. I also appreciate his character design. The giant hook and his Sand-Sand fruit work very well for him. Also, there’s his hidden past, which is left unexplored, and I’m excited to see what it is. Is he Luffy’s mom? Who knows, we’ll just have to wait and see what Oda cooks up. Maybe he’ll be one of the top 2 villains eventually.
4. Enel
Story Summary:
Zapping his way up next as one of the best villains in One Piece is Enel, the Sky God. Introduced as Skypeia’s God, Enel rules over Skypeia with a brutal, omnipotent presence. We quickly learn that he can observe and listen to anyone and executes those who even talk poorly about him. During the events on Skypeia, Enel creates a little game, and those left standing are to be taken with him to the moon. His whole reason to travel to the moon is that he believes it is where the true god should live and reign.
Eventually, he reveals his giant airship called the Ark Maxim, designed to take him to the moon. While he does get defeated by Luffy, he secretly manages to make it off Skypeia and onto the moon. Revealed during the cover pages, Oda shows Enel making it to the moon, where there are people living there. As of now, we don’t know what Enel is planning, but I do think he will come back to the story.
My Thoughts:
When talking about villains, Enel’s character is the clearest depiction of the god complex. He truly believes that no one is above him even after Luffy teaches him a lesson. What I find compelling about Enel is just how far he has brainwashed himself into thinking he is the greatest. It’s truly a scary thought. However, it does make sense. The guy really is the strongest on Skypeia, and there is not a single person who can stop him.
He only lost because Luffy is the only person immune to his Devil Fruit powers. His reign on Skypeia only stopped after 4 years. Imagine all the trauma he delivered to the Skypeians. As far as villains go, he was truly a disturbing one. Other than his god complex, there isn’t anything much deeper than that. Maybe one day we will see more of Enel, but as of now he’s pretty decent.
3. Marshall D. Teach
Story Summary:
Taking the bronze medal on this list of villains is Blackbeard, aka Marshall D. Teach. The wielder of the Dark-Dark Fruit was first introduced during the Jaya Arc, where he meets Luffy at a bar. At the bar, the two order the same foods and drinks, exclaiming their likes and dislikes. After Luffy and Zoro get thrashed by Bellamy, Blackbeard awaits and tells them to never give up on your dreams; if you believe the sky island is real, then it is real.
Blackbeard’s goal to gain Warlord status is soon revealed, and he chases Luffy after noticing his updated bounty. Through the Knock Up Stream, the Straw Hats survive the chase. However, Blackbeard is able to pursue and capture Luffy’s brother, Portgas D. Ace. This action is what sparks the Marineford War. At the war, Ace dies while Whitebeard is finished off by Blackbeard. Following the Timeskip, Blackbeard is now on the hunt to become the King of the Pirates.
My Thoughts:
While there’s more to discuss about his story, it’s also still not finished. What I like about Blackbeard is how his goal is very similar to Luffy’s. They both want to achieve their dreams and strongly believe in following their dreams. However, their way of getting there is completely opposite. Blackbeard will insert every kind of chaos and hurt those in his way, whereas Luffy surrounds himself with hope and helps those along his journey.
I also find it very interesting that Blackbeard is a D member. Every D member so far has been depicted as more heroic and good, but not Blackbeard. Every action he’s taken so far has only benefited him. It truly makes me wonder if he will one day help the Straw Hats. Anyway, Blackbeard is a great villain so far, and every time I see him it truly angers me. He shows this cowardice, but beneath it there’s a lot of meticulous planning. I do think he will be number 1 on this list of villains someday.
2. Charlotte Linlin
Story Summary:
On this ranking of villains, the silver medal has to go to Big Mom aka Charlotte Linlin. First introduced waaaay back in Fish Man Island, Big Mom is an absolutely terrifying Yonko. As a kid, she gained her Soul-Soul Fruit during one of her hunger pangs by eating her caretaker, Mother Carmel. Once she became older, Big Mom joined the Rocks Pirates for a period of time before creating her own empire. This empire’s home was on Whole Cake Island.
During the Whole Cake Island arc, Monkey D. Luffy infiltrated her home in an attempt to take back Sanji and take some Poneglyphs. Big Mom chases and chases but ends up losing the battle after the Straw Hats escape. Finally, her last attempt at domination came during the Wano Country Arc. Here, she teamed up with Kaido only to again lose, this time to Trafalgar Law and Eustass Kidd.
My Thoughts:
To me, Big Mom is one of the most underrated villains. I think it’s quite obvious One Piece favors Kaido over Big Mom, but her entire character is so much better. Big Mom’s backstory is more memorable. Also, her Devil Fruit being tied to creating a cute but disturbing atmosphere really fits her as well. The most sickening part of her character is how she wanted to create a mini-multi-cultural world called Totto Land. By doing so, she wanted a place where everyone can live happily ever after.
Now, her end goal isn’t horrible. In fact, I think multi-cultural countries are extremely important. However, her means of creating this environment is insanely bonkers. She forces other nations to wed her sons or daughters. Because of how strong she is, the other nations are reluctant to back down, thus making her “utopia” come closer and closer to reality. Some parts weren’t handled that well with her, like the amnesia plotline during Wano. Overall, she is one of the best villains in the series.
1. Donquixote Doflamingo
Story Summary:
Finally, we have reached the number 1 villain in One Piece: Donquixote Doflamingo. At a young age, Doflamingo’s father, Homing, chose to leave behind their Celestial Dragon status. While most would morally agree with this, it actually left Homing’s family vulnerable to the ordinary people of the world. They were resented and hunted by everyone. This was the turning point for Doflamingo. Surrounded by all this hate, Doflamingo murders his own dad, blaming him for all the misery they went through.
As Doflamingo grew older, the only person he “trusted” was his brother Rosinante. However, Doflamingo kills him too. To top it all off, Doflamingo captured Dressrosa as his own, pretending to be the hero just like Crocodile. While the people of Dressrosa seemed to be happy, darker truths were hidden from them. Countless people and Tontatas were turned into slaves. Ultimately, his reign came to an end after Monkey D. Luffy crushed him.
My Thoughts:
Doflamingo is a batshit crazy guy. That’s why he ranks above all the other villains. Diving into his past, I can definitely see how he turned out like that. The story of him and his brother is a great example of nature vs. nurture. Despite the parent’s efforts, only Rosinante continued to carry on their values while Doflamingo carried hatred from the environment around him. It’s honestly quite tragic when you think about it. However, it does not excuse what he has done. His cruelty caused him to go off the deep end, causing so much hurt and destruction in his wake.
What was really interesting is how much of a Celestial Dragon he really is. While he hated them for not letting him back in, Doflamingo’s time in Dressrosa paralleled the Celestial Dragons. They both pretend everything is just peachy while secretly causing pain to others and exploiting them for their labor. Deep down, I truly despise him, but parts of me can sympathize with the guy even after everything he has done. That to me is just peak writing for a villain. The last thing to mention is the endgame. Where is Doflamingo’s story going? Most likely, as many theorize, he will reveal the secrets of Mary Geoise. Anyway, Doflamingo is by far the greatest villain in One Piece.
In Conclusion
Thanks for tuning in for this week’s article. The 20 Best Villains in One Piece was definitely a tough one to write about. It was tough ranking some of these. For instance, Saturn was a tricky one to rank because it felt like he could be anywhere on the list. Anyway, I’m sure many won’t agree, and that’s fine. Let me know your thoughts!