With such a huge roster of characters, One Piece seems to be blessed with some of the best villains in the anime industry. One Piece also has one of the most energetic and vibrant fanbases, which produces a lot of fan-related content such as memes, fan theories, analysis of recent episodes, debates of opposing views, and more. One Piece fans have been at each other’s throats for a while now over the series’ greatest villain, and the top contenders are Kaido and Doflamingo.

Luffy vs Doflamingo
Luffy vs Doflamingo (Credits: Toei Animation)

After One Piece episode 1072 was released, fans were already debating who was the greatest villain in One Piece, even before the battle between the King of Beasts and the Captain of the Straw Hat Pirates had concluded. Donquixote Doflamingo, who served as Dressrosa Arc’s central antagonist and is regarded as one of the best villains of One Piece was pitted against Kaido by the fans. So, let’s dive deep into this and establish who is the better villain: Doflamingo or Kaido.

The Battle Between The Worst: Donquixote Doflamingo vs Kaido

Kaido
Kaido (Credits: Toei Animation)

When Doflamingo initially appeared in One Piece episode 151, it was immediately apparent that he would be a compelling antagonist. He was identified as one of the Seven Warlords and his frozen bounty of 340 million berries was disclosed in that episode. He made his first appearance with his characteristic flashy look and in the Holy Land of Mary Geoise, he used his Devil Fruit to incite combat between two Marines.

Doflamingo was heavily involved in underworld brokering, including slavery, drugs, the trafficking of Devil Fruit, and the distribution of weapons of mass destruction. On the other hand, Kaido supplied weapons of mass destruction to Doflamingo in exchange for SMILE fruits to develop the strongest army of Devil Fruit users.

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According to one side of the ongoing debate, due to the motivation behind his evil deeds, the overall writing, and the character’s backstory, Doflamingo was chosen as the best villain by many of the fans. Additionally, fans claimed that Doflamingo made for a much more compelling villain because Kaido was just like a big block ahead of Luffy’s quest to become the Pirate King.

One fan compared the two and affirmed that Doflamingo is a better villain because of his evil acts like enslaving people and experimenting on children. The X user continued to say that Kaido was not much better than Doflamingo because he had taken over and destroyed Wano’s government, but the user persisted and said that at least Kaido respects strength and might occasionally be negotiable.

Donquixote Doflamingo Emerged As The Best Villain in One Piece

Donquixote Doflamingo
Donquixote Doflamingo (Credits: Toei Animation)

Given that he controlled the Kingdom like a despot for more than a decade, it makes fitting that Doflamingo functioned as the primary enemy of the Dressrosa Arc. Given his characteristics and past, it makes sense that many fans believe Doflamingo to be One Piece’s greatest villain even after Katakuri and Kaido were introduced.

Once Doflamingo attained the rank of Warlord, he turned his attention to Dressrosa, the Kingdom that his ancestors had once controlled. By creating the impression that the army was killing civilians and stealing money on the royal family’s orders, he set up King Riku. The inhabitants of Dressrosa foolishly welcomed him with wide arms when he made a promise to bring wealth and prosperity to the town.

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To add to that, unlike Kaido, Doflamingo also has a tragic backstory. Doflamingo’s flashback explained why he expected others to bow to him—it was part of his family’s legacy. The World Nobles were despised by the general public, who set fire to their house.

Doflamingo’s mother passed away from an illness and when they were eventually located once more, Doflamingo, his father, and his younger brother were roped up, beaten, and tortured. Luckily for them, none of them lost their lives in the encounter.

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