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Fear is a powerful emotion, especially in shonen anime, where emotions tend to run very high and are key to special abilities.
There are many things to fear in shonen anime, from appearance to power that has horrified in-universe characters and fans for a long time.
Today, this article will attempt to list 10 of the most feared characters in shonen anime and rank them by how fearsome they are.
Note 1: This article contains spoilers for various anime. Content warning for discussions of extreme depictions of violence and potential s*xual abuse.
Note 2: This article is just the author's opinion. It features only one entry per series.
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Ranking the 10 most fearsome characters in shonen anime
10) Medusa Gorgon
But wait, why is Medusa Gorgon from the shonen anime Soul Eater here? Shouldn't the fearsome Kishin be here? Good suggestion, but no.
Medusa is the evil mother of Crona and is abusive, manipulating, and calculating. It's not her appearance that makes her so wicked, but rather her personality and intelligence.
Medusa was able to twist Crona into a weapon and an anxious wreck of a being. She made them go through a lot of torment, including eating a bunny they raised and replacing their blood with demon blood.
Because of her schemes and machinations, Crona becomes a Kishin, and it takes Black Star and friends to stop them.
9) Seryu Ubiquitous
Seryu Ubiquitous from the shonen anime Agame Ga Kill! is a reminder that a pretty face can hide great evil.
If Medusa was awful for being a horrid mom and master manipulator, then Seryu would've been Crona but perfected. She is a cute-looking girl on the outside hiding a sadistic, vicious, lawful evil person that delights in bloodshed.
Here's the thing about Seryu; she had a very tragic backstory. Her parents were killed, and she was raised on the idea that justice is the absolute best thing. The Empire made her a weapon, and she believes everyone that's against the insanely corrupt Empire is evil and must be eliminated.
8) Cell
Cell from the shonen anime Dragon Ball Z is still worse than Buu or Frieza in the scare factor. Buu had might and unpredictability, Frieza was a sadist, but Cell? Cell was smart.
Cell took his time to absorb energy, stalk his prey, strike opportunistically, and take advantage of opponents' weaknesses (Vegeta's ego, Trunks' lack of speed, etc.)
Cell was so strong and fearsome that he didn't need to kill people right away. He toyed with them, outsmarted them, and generally made them feel fear.
Even perfected, he flexed on everyone by making his announcement about the Cell Games on national TV. It took Gohan in SS2, Goku's aid, and everyone else to kill him.
7) Ophelia
Ophelia from the dark shonen anime Claymore is another pretty face hiding horror. At first, she seems like a flighty, whimsical elf maiden. That's a false front, considering her nickname means Blood-Smeared Wicked Warrior in Japanese.
Ophelia is rather obsessed with killing Awakened and, in particular, Priscilla. She made Miria go into an awakening state just to slake her bloodthirst, so fellow Claymores aren't safe either.
Of course, when Ophelia awakens herself as a snake, she breaks down and begs Clare to kill her.
6) Mahito
Mahito, one of the main antagonists of the shonen anime Jujutsu Kaisen, combines power and brains into one.
More of a master manipulator than anything else, he relishes in the act of playing with people like chess pieces and using them to see cursed spirits reign supreme. An example is Junpei, who he manipulated quite well.
The power part is self-evident. His genius intellect is also backed up by immense physical strength and durability, which is enough to withstand hard if not lethal blows. His cursed technique grants access to a huge muscle form a la Younger Toguro from Yu Yu Hakusho.
5) Orochimaru
Let's face it. Snakes can be terrifying. If Ophelia and Medusa weren't enough to make anyone gain Ophidiophobia, Orochimaru from the shonen anime Naruto would do the trick. His fearsomeness comes from his massive repertoire of jutsu and his general use of snakes in everything he does.
Orochimaru is also relatively quick and intelligent, knowing how to tackle any situation with his mind. However, his jutsu knowledge is killer, too. He messed with Kurama's seal, gave Sasuke the Curse Mark, won against The Third Hokage, can revive the dead, and is just a beast of a horrifying ninja.
4) Dio Brando
Even before Dio Brando from the shonen anime JoJo's Bizarre Adventure became a vampire and gained the ability to stop time, he was a conniving man who made Jonathan Joestar's life hell.
He killed Jonathan's dog in a furnace, tried to steal Jonathan's lover Erina Pendleton away from him, poisoned George Joestar, and went on a vampiric spree across England.
Even beheading him didn't fully kill him. He lay at the bottom of the ocean for well over 100 years at the time of Stardust Crusaders. He then had to hone his skills with body and Stand.
Dio was dreaded by the time the Joestar party reached Egypt, and he proved why by killing Kakyoin and Joseph and giving Jotaro a real hard fight.
3) All for One
Terror of Japan in the shonen anime My Hero Academia, All for One is a villain unparalleled by any save All Might himself.
The Symbol of Evil, as he's called, isn't a joke, as he's sadistic and rules in the shadows. Seeing himself comparable to a Demon Lord, he even possesses Tomura Shigaraki to crush One for All.
He steals Quirks and uses everything to his advantage. In his prime, he destroyed a bunch of pro heroes and constantly annihilated everything around him on a whim.
All for One's strength and speed completely eclipses everyone else's, going faster than sound. His durability and will are near indomitable.
2) Kaidou
Kaidou is the strongest of all the Four Emperors that the Straw Hat Crew has faced in the shonen anime One Piece.
The boss of Wano Country and consumer of the Fish Fish Fruit, this colossal bullman is incredibly savage and reckless. He is fiercely cruel to anyone he considers inferior, which is practically everyone, including his own allies.
His immense arrogance isn't without precedent, as he has the highest known bounty of any pirate currently living and the third-highest in history. He broke Luffy's Gear 4 with ease, sank nine prison ships single-handedly, and has nigh instructible durability even without Haki. He also has a dragon form.
1) Muzan Kibutsuji
The King of Demons from the shonen anime Demon Slayer gets the top spot as the most feared and dreaded character in shonen anime. Why? Simple; he's responsible for Nezuko and Tanjiro's suffering, among many others.
At a whopping 10,000 years old, his ultimate goal is to become immortal either by finding the Blue Spider Lily or overwhelming Earth with demons.
Putting his abilities into words is difficult since he's the first demon in existence and can basically walk through any slayer that dares step up to him.
Muzan can avoid beheading by sunlight-infused metals and adapt to poisons fast. He also has a monstrous combat form similar to Gigyas from Earthbound. His very touch can create demons, and he's killed many to get to where he is.
