When anime fans think about mecha anime, they tend to think about the cool giant robots. Of course, there’s more to mecha anime than that. A good mecha anime is full of discussion about politics, or humanity’s potential for goodness. It’s also a place for some of the most powerful villains in anime history.
Some of these villains are just great pilots, while others might pilot robots so powerful that their actual piloting skill doesn’t matter. Still other villains are so powerful they don’t even need giant robots at all; the power they wield is enough. In Super Robot anime in particular, the villain’s power scale can get to absurd levels quickly.
10 Schneizel el Britannia Aimed To Rule Over Earth Through Ultimate Intimidation
Code Geass
Schneizel el Britannia was Lelouch’s most formidable foe in Code Geass. Given Lelouch is one of the smartest anime characters of all time, that’s no small feat. Even after Lelouch found a way to deal with his parents Charles and Marianne, Schneizel still found a way to stand in his path. He was skilled at manipulating the people around him, and commanded the power of the Britannian Empire.
Schneizel’s goal was to eventually rely on the power of the floating fortress, Damocles. Damocles’ ability to instantly attack any place on Earth was meant to keep the entire human population in check, allowing him perfect rule over Earth. However, Schneizel has to rank in last place because he couldn’t achieve his goals. Moreover, even with Damocles’ power he pales in comparison to some of the mecha villains further up this list.
After being given a mysterious power to control others, an outcast prince becomes the masked leader of the rebellion against an all-powerful empire.
- Release Date
- October 6, 2006
- Cast
- Jun Fukuyama , Takahiro Sakurai , Johnny Yong Bosch , Ami Koshimizu
- Seasons
- 2
- Studio
- Sunrise
9 Paptimus Scirocco’s Psychic Powers Allowed Him To Destroy A Man’s Mind
Zeta Gundam
It can be argued Paptimus’ rapid rise up the Federation ranks was because the Federation recognized his skill. More accurately though, it was down to him abusing his psychic powers to constantly persuade people into giving him what he wanted. His genius allowed him not only join the Jupiter Energy Fleet, but also design his own mobile suits, which aided him in using his powerful NewType abilities. Eventually, his skills and ruthless attitude allowed him to take over the Titans from its creator, Jamitov Hymen.
Paptimus is considered one of the strongest NewTypes in Gundam’s Universal Century timeline. Just to defeat him, Kamille is forced to use his own powers to draw on the spirits of the fallen soldiers from the Gryps Conflict. However, even in defeat, Paptimus was capable of reaching out with his psychic powers to attempt to destroy Kamille’s mind.
Ten years after the One Year War, Camille Bidan becomes involved in the conflict against the Titans as the pilot of Zeta Gundam.
- Director
- Kô Matsuo , Yoshiyuki Tomino
- Release Date
- May 28, 2005
- Cast
- Toshio Furukawa , Tôru Furuya , Kazuhiko Inoue , Masako Katsuki , Maya Okamoto , Bin Shimada , Hirotaka Suzuoki , Nobuo Tobita
- Writers
- Yoshiyuki Tomino , Hajime Yatate
- Runtime
- 94 Minutes
8 Char Aznable Used His Psychic Powers To Attempt To Force Humanity Off Earth
Char’s Counterattack
Also known as The Red Comet, Char Aznable is one of the most iconic characters in Gundam history. He serves as the main antagonist of Mobile Suit Gundam, periodically coming back to test Amuro in his scarlet-colored Zeon mobile suits. He re-appears in Zeta Gundam as a co-protagonist with the main character, but can’t remain as a good guy. The events of both Zeta and ZZ Gundam cause Char to go evil again for Char’s Counterattack.
There, he relies on the power of the psycho-frame and his powers as a NewType to lead the Neo-Zeon forces. In the end, his final plan involves slamming a meteor onto Earth and wiping out a large portion of humanity. The Sazabi mobile suit augmented with his NewType powers made this a very possible goal for him, and it’s only Amuro’s timely interference that protects the Earth. Still, even these psychic powers are far from what some of the other villains in mecha history can do.
Mobile Suit Gundam: Char’s Counterattack
Amuro Ray and Char Aznable settle their rivalry once and for all during the Second Neo Zeon War.
- Release Date
- March 12, 1988
- Cast
- Shūichi Ikeda , Tôru Furuya , Nozomu Sasaki , Koichi Yamadera
- Runtime
- 119 minutes
- Characters By
- Yoshiyuki Tomino
- Production Company
- Sunrise
7 Devil Gundam Relied On The Power Of Nanomachines For Infinite Evolution
G Gundam
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G Gundam embraced being a Super Robot as much as possible, starting with a near-invincible antagonist like Devil Gundam. Known as “Dark Gundam” in the States, the Devil Gundam was an example of technology gone completely out of control. Originally designed to help the Earth recover, its programming malfunctioned when it landed on Earth. Instead of trying to help the Earth, it decided to wipe out mankind.
Created while relying on powerful nanomachines that imitate artificial cells, the Devil Gundam is nearly unstoppable. It’s capable of absorbing other people’s abilities and controlling the human mind. It also has the power to regenerate from any attack as long as even a small part of it remains. Worse, it can evolve following battles, becoming more powerful at a rate that almost no enemy can keep pace with.
Mobile Fighter G Gundam
It is the year Future Century 60 and most of humanity has migrated to orbiting space colonies, leaving behind the polluted Earth. To prevent war, the colonies came up with the tournament known as the Gundam Fight. Every country builds a Gundam and sends it to Earth.Â
- Release Date
- April 22, 1994
- Cast
- Tomokazu Seki , Matt Embry
- Seasons
- 1 Season
- Creator
- Yoshiyuki Tomino, Hajime Yatate
- Producer
- Yoshiaki Koizumi, Masahiko Minami, Masao Ueda
- Production Company
- nime R, FAI, Group Donguri, MI, Nakamura Production, Seoul Dub, Seoul Kids, Studio Boomerang, Studio DEEN, Sunrise, TV Asahi
- Number of Episodes
- 49 Episodes
6 Alexis Kerib Is An Immortal That Thrives Off Negative Emotions
SSSS.Gridman
The main villain of SSSS.Gridman, Alexis Kerib is an immortal who lives to see negative emotions thriving in others. He manipulated middle schooler Akane Shinjo with the promise of a perfect world, just for the joy of seeing it completely fall apart. It’s also his power that allowed Akane to create kaiju that could threaten the city she created.
Though Alexis’ power needs others to create new kaiju, he can simply resurrect old ones as necessary to give himself an army. He can lay waste to a city with his energy attacks, and has power great enough to even surpass Gridman. But most importantly, Kerib is immortal, and can return to life even after an enemy has given their all to destroy him.
A high school student discovers he can merge with a giant robot, Gridman, to fight colossal monsters that threaten his city. With the help of his classmates, who form a support group called the Gridman Alliance, they uncover hidden truths about their world and the mysterious events surrounding them.
- Release Date
- January 17, 2021
- Cast
- Lindsay Seidel , Jill Harris , Reina Ueda , Brandon McInnis , Greg Ayres , Soma Saito , Barry Yandell , Tetsu Inada , Yuya Hirose , Yume Miyamoto
- Seasons
- 1
- Creator(s)
- Gridman
5 Dr. Hell Has Mastered The Powers Of Ancient Technology
Mazinger
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It can be easy to write Dr. Hell off as a simple mad scientist. However, he’s a mad scientist that’s mastered ancient technology to create giant monsters to attack the world. The world’s military might has been proven to be helpless in the face of his kaiju. Even being killed seemingly isn’t enough, as he’s been revived multiple times in the past.
By the time of Mazinger Z: Infinity, Dr. Hell has successfully stolen an improved version of the Mazinger known as the Infinity. A massive mecha that stands at over 600 meters tall, the Infinity wields an awesome amount of power. It was believed to have unlimited potential, and its ultimate weapon is literally capable of rewriting reality itself with another parallel universe. Still, Dr. Hell is locked at the fifth place spot because every mecha villain above him basically starts with the level of power the Infinity has.
Mazinger Z
Teenager Koji Kabuto pilots the amazing super-robot Mazinger Z to avenge its inventor (his grandfather) against the Mycene Empire, led by the evil mad scientist Doctor Hell.
- Release Date
- December 3, 1972
- Cast
- Jôji Yanami , Hiroshi Ôtake
- Number of Episodes
- 92
- Sequel
- Great Mazinger, Mazinger Z: Infinity
4 Z-Master Wanted To Assimilate All Sentient Life
GaoGaiGar
Z-Master is the final villain of GaoGaiGar, a series that’s a swan song for the Brave Saga franchise. A computer program that was meant to control Zonder metal, Z-Master is obscenely powerful. It wields the power of every Zonder lifeform within the universe. More than that, Z-Master is the combined power of the Machine Primevals that were the main enemy for most of the series.
Z-Master’s goal is assimilating all sentient life in the universe, and it absolutely has the power to do so. The machine primevals were capable of things like shunting things into other realities, creating miniature suns, and fighting at near lightspeed. Since Z-Master wields the power of every Zonder, it has access to that power and more. It’s also capable of incredible levels of regeneration, and defeating it required someone capable of wiping out Zonder Metal from the entire universe.
The King of Braves GaoGaiGar
A special organization using giant robots and aided by an alien boy battles the threat of a menace that inflicts havoc by turning humans into destructive mecha menaces.
- Release Date
- February 1, 1997
- Cast
- Nobuyuki Hiyama , Maiko Itou
- Number of Episodes
- 49
- Studio
- Sunrise
- Directors
- Yoshitomo Yonetani
3 Getter Emperor Show The True Power Of The Getter Rays
Getter Robo
The power of the Getter Rays were never meant to help anyone other than itself. Eventually, the Getter Machines evolve into becoming the size of a planet, and can combine into a single being known as the Getter Emperor. In the distant future, the Getter Emperor travels the stars, devouring planets to continue powering itself.
Where the original Getter Machines struggled against just a handful of enemies, the Getter Emperor can wipe out dozens in a single blast. It’s even theorized the Getter Emperor has enough energy to surpass that of the Big Bang itself. Though the Getter Emperor works with humanity, it’s mostly just using them as it continues to become more powerful through its potential for infinite evolution. The Emperor becomes such a terror in the future that alien races travel back to the past to destroy it.
Getter Robo
Three strong-willed teenagers, Ryoma Nagare, Hayato Jin and Musashi Tomoe, pilot three specially designed combat jets (Eagle, Jaguar, and Bear) which can be combined into three different giant robots, Getter-1 (balanced and for flight combat), Getter-2 (fast and for ground combat), and Getter-3 (strong and for marine combat).Â
- Release Date
- April 4, 1974
- Cast
- Akira Kamiya
- Creator
- Ken Ishikawa and Go Nagai.
- Number of Episodes
- 51
- Franchise
- Getter Robo
2 Ideon Can Attack Using The Power Of Black Holes
Space Runaway Ideon
7:06
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Initially, it’s believed the Ideon is the ally of the humans that discovered it. Viewers who stick with the show learn very quickly that this couldn’t be further from the truth. The Ideon is the most powerful giant robot ever created, and the secret twist of Space Runaway Ideon is that it’s sentient. Worse, it’s completely fed up with all other sentient life, and aims to pull all life into an endless war.
Ideon’s weapons grow more powerful over the course of the series. It wields a beam saber that can potentially extend forever. It fires off blasts of black holes. It features near limitless power, constantly pushing its inhabitants further and further into war. Eventually, the Ideon convinces its inhabitants to invoke its power…and by doing so, it destroys all life within the universe.
Space Runaway Ideon
The apocalyptic, bleak chronicles of the Solo starship as they cruise across the cosmos, and wage war with the extraterrestrial Buff Clan over a celestial robot known as the Ideon.
- Release Date
- May 8, 1980
- Cast
- Hideyuki Tanaka
- Creator
- Yoshiyuki Tomino and Hajime Yatate
- Number of Episodes
- 39
1 Anti-Spiral Can Alter Reality And Probability
Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann
As one of the greatest mecha anime ever, Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann enjoyed constantly one-upping itself. However, the Anti-Spiral is a villain that’s literally impossible to top. The Anti-Spiral is the ultimate villain not only of humanity, but any life that isn’t part of the Anti-Spiral race. It has only one goal: keeping any other form of life from ever evolving.
The Anti-Spiral has the power to achieve its goal, too. It’s capable of altering the laws of probability. It’s capable of meeting any enemy’s power level and having just enough to surpass them, no matter how strong that enemy is. The Gurren Lagann eventually relies on the powers of galaxies…and the Anti-Spiral can still match it. One of its most powerful attacks involves merging two galaxies together and attacking with a power that equals the Big Bang itself. The Anti-Spiral is capable of so many absurd feats, it has to rank at the top of the list.
Two friends, Simon and Kamina, become the symbols of rebellion against the powerful Spiral King, who forced mankind into subterranean villages.
- Release Date
- April 1, 2007
- Cast
- Shizuka Ito , Tetsuya Kakihara , Yuri Lowenthal , Michelle Ruff , Marina Inoue , Steve Blum
- Seasons
- 1
- Creator
- Hiroyuki Imaishi
- Number of Episodes
- 27
- Studio
- Gainax
