Summary
- Avatar franchise's success lies in its well-written villains with unique goals and abilities, adding depth to the story.
- Characters like Azula, Amon, and Vaatu stand out for their impact on the heroes and intricate ideologies.
- From power-hungry Fire Lords to vengeful freedom fighters, Avatar's villains bring complexity and depth to the series.
In the early 2000s, Nickelodeon introduced Avatar: The Last Airbender to the fantasy genre realm, revealing a bending-based world where Avatar Aang needed to master the four different elements and end the Fire Nation's tyranny. Close to a decade later, Avatar: The Legend of Korra debuted in 2012, showing us the aftereffects of Aang's heroic effort, and the new tech-oriented world, where Avatar Korra needed to restore balance to the somewhat fragile society and prevent the likes of Vaatu from causing world destruction.
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The Avatar franchise remains popular among fans due to its great re-watch value, stemming from the show’s epic fights, comedic scenes, interesting array of characters, and superb plot. However, one of Avatar's main specialties is its villains, with different goals and mannerisms. Villains like Azula, the Firelord's daughter, gave the main characters occasional despair, Amon, the revolutionary, politicized the franchise, allowing viewers to see through the perspective of non-benders, and Vaatu threatened impending apocalypse. So, we are going to rank the best villains in Avatar based on their ideals, thought processes, and how well they impacted the story.
Updated March 3, 2024, by Emedo Destiny: The Avatar franchise came back with a bang following the release of the live-action of its famous first series, Avatar: The Last Airbender. With so many mixed reactions and talking points, the franchise is once again the rave of the internet. The franchise boasts many significant elements and features. However, the series particularly stands out for its cast of characters, specifically in their villainy. From a face-stealing spirit, a war-hungry Firelord, to a charismatic freedom fighter who had the power to take away bending, the show always managed to outdo itself in terms of its search for antagonism for its peculiar protagonists. So, regarding the series' villains, here are the most frightening to behold.
19 The Dangerously Loyal P'Li
Bending Type: Fire Bending (Combustion)
Member of the infamous Red Lotus, P'Li was Zaheer's love interest before his incarceration, and in addition to that, a fearsome fire bender who could combustion-bend. Initially imprisoned at the hands of the order of the White Lotus, P'Li regained her freedom with the help of Zaheer, who, together with the Red Lotus, unleashed the horrors of anarchy on the world and Avatar Korra.
Born as a bending prodigy with the aptitude to combustion bend, P'Li lived her early life as a trained assassin for a warlord responsible for her kidnap. Despite being a capable fire bender, P'Li's combustion bending managed to be even more impressive than the first iteration shown in the franchise, with her capable of accurately taking out her target regardless of difficulty. P'Li, however, meets her end at the hands of Suyin Beifong during the Air Temple invasion.
18 Vengeful Jet
Fighting Style: Swordsman
In his brief yet prolonged stint in the Last Airbender series as Freedom Fighters refugee group leader, Jet provided a fresh breath of antagonism for Aang and his friends. Orphaned as a child, Jet grows to become a vengeful vigilante with a deep-seated hatred for the Fire Nation, who would go to any length to exact his revenge, even at the expense of the lives of innocent civilians.
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This particular trait of his became undeniable after he betrayed Team Avatar. Even after seemingly turning a new leaf, Jet is unfortunately once more a hurdle for Team Avatar to cross in Ba Sing Se, an encounter which sadly led to his demise at the hands of Long Feng.
17 Zhao, The Overzealous Commander
Bending Type: Fire Bending
Zhao was an overambitious commander and leader of the Fire Nation Navy in the first season of the Last Airbender series, whose abilities justified his forward actions. Due to his mastery of fire bending under the tutelage of Jeong Jeong of the White Lotus, Zhao was one of the most powerful men in the Fire Nation at the time. To prove his worthiness and loyalty to the Fire Lord, the central antagonist for much of The Last Airbender's first season, Zhao took upon himself the Avatar's capture, making him the unappreciated rival of the exiled Prince Zuko.
Rash and thoughtless concerning the Avatar, Zhao was responsible for the death of the Moon Spirit following his siege of the Northern Water Tribe. His action would lead to the desecration of the Fire Nation's navy fleet by Aang and, ultimately, his condemnation to the Fog Of Lost Souls in the Spirit World by the Ocean Spirit.
16 The Covetous Fire Lord Sozin
Bending Type: Fire Bending
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The mastermind of the Hundred Year War, Sozin began the persecution plaguing the benders even after his death. Father to Azulon and grandfather to Iroh and Ozai, Sozin started to steer down the path of evil world domination after Roku was confirmed to be the Avatar. Unable to keep hidden his desires for global encroachment, Sozin's relationship with his best friend, Roku, became highly strained.
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A result which ended in Roku's death and Sozin harnessing the power of the comet to commit mass genocide against the Air Nomads, kickstarting a war that culminated in two lifetimes and another comet to put an end to.
15 The Deadly Skilled Ming-Hua
Bending Type: Water Bending
In Book 3 of The Legend of Korra, Ming-Hua made her first appearance as one of the secondary antagonists. Together with other members of the Red Lotus, she attempted to abduct young Avatar Korra but this resulted in her imprisonment in a cell above a volcano without any access to water.
Born without arms, she used a specific style of Waterbending to create arm-like appendages which gave her a tremendous edge in battle. She could manipulate these ‘water arms’ to be more resourceful than ordinary arms and could even freeze the tips into lethal spikes. Using her water whips, she could also create the velocity required to transform her entire body into an ice drill capable of digging a hole in the ground. These and many other highly debilitating techniques made her a formidable opponent.
14 The Dangerous Lavabender Ghazan
Bending Type: Earth Bending (Lara)
Ghazan was a dangerous Earthbending criminal and another member of the Order of the Red Lotus imprisoned after taking part in a plot to capture Avatar Korra. His Lavabending abilities made him a terrifying villain since his lava was highly lethal and incapable of being redirected by most opponents. He could manipulate it to be used as a potent weapon or transform any earth-based attack launched at him into lava and re-divert it.
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He remained devoted to the Red Lotus, going to any length to achieve their goals, even opting to kill himself rather than surrender and go back to prison.
13 Combustion Man
Bending Type: Fire Bending (Combustion)
The Combustion Man, first introduced in Book Three of Avatar: The Last Airbender, possessed a specialized bending ability that allowed him to produce powerful explosions that could tear through any strike directed at him.
Hired as a bounty hunter by Zuko to kill Avatar Aang, he relentlessly pursued Aang and his friend, tracking them down wherever they went and forcing them into battles which they narrowly escaped. Very little was revealed about this firebending assassin, not even his real name. He also displayed no physical weaknesses when attacked. All of this added to his intimidating aura.
12 The Face Stealer Koh
Entity: Ancient Spirit
Koh, also known as the Face Stealer, was one of the Spirit World's most ancient and knowledgeable spirits. He first appeared when Avatar Aang went to Koh's lair along with Roku.
He was a malicious spirit with a centipede-like body who found joy in stealing the faces of anybody that showed emotion in his presence. The most terrifying aspect of his power was that capturing the face of another being does not kill them, but instead traps them "somewhere between life and death" for many years.
11 Hama The Twisted Blood Bender
Bending Type: Water Bending (Blood)
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The creator of the deadly blood-bending technique that was a terror to even Avatars started out as a water tribe girl, thriving in her little village. Hama's villainous nature emanated from being incarcerated by soldiers of the Fire Nation. Captured alongside her tribe members, Hama created her pathway for her escape by creating a new water-bending sub-art, which she perfected using rats in the prison cells.
After practicing and perfecting the powerful bending technique, she escaped from prison and became the villain to the innocent citizens of the Fire Nation. Using blood-bending, she controlled innocent citizens, holding them hostage for the actions committed by the Fire Nation towards her and her deceased brethren. Although Hama was briefly introduced, her story was saddening, revealing how suffering can change someone's personality and ideals.
10 The Crafty Long Feng And The Dai Li
Bending Type: Earth Bending
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Long Feng practically shows how a king's authority can be twisted to benefit his most trusted advisors. The power-hungry advisor to the Earth King was able to charm the unassuming ruler of the Earth Kingdom into believing his wiles and less-than-ideal suggestions. Backed up by the Dai Li, Long Feng was undoubtedly the unofficial ruler of the Earth Kingdom.
Using his wits and intelligence and the Dai Li's influence, he managed to brainwash and manipulate the citizens of the Earth Kingdom into believing that there was no existing war outside their imposing wall. Unfortunately, the façade he sets up crumbles after Aang visits. Still, he managed to wriggle out of the temporary problem, using his connection with Azula, showing his doggedness and mettle as a villain.