Why Is 'If We Were Villains' Compared To 'The Secret History'?

The main villains in 'My Disciples Are All Villains' aren't your typical mustache-twirling bad guys—they're terrifying because they're so damn charismatic. The Patriarch of the Netherworld Sect, Lu Zhou, steals every scene with his calm demeanor hiding a ruthless will. He doesn't raise his voice; he just casually rewrites reality with his Daoist arts. Then there's his 'disciples'—each a walking apocalypse with tragic backstories that make their villainy chillingly relatable. Ye Zhan the Blood Emperor bathes battlefields in crimson mist, while Xue Ling turns entire cities into ice sculptures with her frozen qi. The real kicker? They genuinely believe they're the heroes of their own stories, which makes their atrocities hit harder.

In 'MHA More', the villains stand out as complex antagonists who challenge the heroes in unexpected ways. The main threat comes from the League of Villains, led by the enigmatic All For One, a master manipulator with the power to steal and redistribute quirks. His sheer presence is terrifying, especially when he clashes with All Might, showcasing a battle of ideologies as much as raw power. Tomura Shigaraki, his successor, starts off as a chaotic force but evolves into something far more dangerous, his Decay quirk growing to apocalyptic levels. The Paranormal Liberation Front adds another layer, blending political extremism with brute strength, making them a multifaceted menace. Then there are the Nomu, bioengineered monsters designed to counter specific heroes, each one a nightmare tailored for destruction. High-End Nomu like Hood push even pro heroes to their limits, displaying horrifying adaptability. Lesser-known villains like Re-Destro and his Meta Liberation Army bring a ideological war into the mix, arguing for quirk supremacy in a way that mirrors real-world extremism. What makes 'MHA More' special is how these villains aren’t just evil for evil’s sake—they have motivations, traumas, and twisted logic that make them compelling. The series does a great job showing how their actions ripple through society, forcing heroes to question their own methods.

The villains in 'Foundryside' are terrifying because they're not just evil for evil's sake—they're products of a broken system. The main antagonist is Estelle Candiano, the ruthless CEO of the Merchant House Candiano. She’s not some cartoon villain; she’s calculating, willing to crush anyone to maintain her family’s monopoly over scriving (the book’s magic system). What makes her scary is how she weaponizes bureaucracy and wealth. Then there’s Gregor Dandolo, a twisted revolutionary who wants to burn the system down, but his methods are just as brutal as the corruption he fights. The real kicker? The hierophants—ancient, godlike beings trapped in artifacts—who manipulate everything from the shadows. Their motives are alien, their power absolute, and they don’t even see humans as worth considering.

The villains in 'Cat & Mouse' are a twisted duo—Victor Kreel and the enigmatic 'Silhouette.' Kreel is a former detective turned serial killer, using his investigative skills to evade capture while taunting authorities with cryptic clues. His obsession with outsmarting the protagonist, a rookie cop named Ellie, makes him terrifyingly personal. Silhouette, on the other hand, is a shadowy figure who manipulates events from afar, specializing in psychological warfare. Unlike Kreel's brutal hands-on approach, Silhouette thrives on chaos, turning allies against each other with forged evidence and whispered lies. Their dynamic is chilling—Kreel craves recognition, while Silhouette revels in anonymity. The novel’s tension comes from their conflicting methods, forcing Ellie to battle both physical and invisible threats.

In 'If We Were Villains', Oliver's transformation is profound and multi-layered. At the start, he's the quiet, observant one in the group, often overshadowed by his more flamboyant peers. His loyalty to his friends, especially Richard, is unwavering, but this loyalty blinds him to the toxic dynamics brewing beneath the surface. The tragedy that unfolds forces Oliver to confront his passivity. He begins to question the morality of his actions and those around him, shedding his naivety. By the end, Oliver emerges as a more introspective and independent individual. The weight of guilt and the isolation he experiences in prison strip away his earlier idealism. He learns to stand alone, no longer defined by the group's collective identity. His love for Shakespearean drama shifts from mere performance to a lens through which he understands his own life—raw, unfiltered, and painfully real. The Oliver who exits the story is haunted but wiser, carrying the scars of his choices with a hard-earned clarity.

In 'The Waters', the main villains aren’t just individuals but a twisted cabal of necromancers known as the Drowned Choir. These ancient, waterlogged sorcerers manipulate tides and drown entire villages as sacrifices to their oceanic god, Nyxis. Their leader, Eldrin the Hollow, is a former sailor whose soul was claimed by the sea—now he commands storms with a whisper and turns men into mindless, brine-filled husks. The Drowned Choir’s cruelty lies in their patience; they don’t just kill, they make the land itself despair, sinking it inch by inch into the abyss. Their second-in-command, Lady Maris, is even more chilling. She appears as a siren, luring victims with songs of lost love, only to crush their lungs with cursed pearls. The novel paints them as forces of nature, relentless and poetic in their destruction. What makes them terrifying is their belief—they see drowning the world as a mercy, a return to primordial peace. Their ideology blurs the line between villainy and tragic fanaticism.

The main villains in 'Renegades' are the Anarchists, a group of former superheroes who ruled over Gatlon City with chaos before being overthrown. Their leader is Ace Anarchy, a terrifying figure who can manipulate metal and once controlled the city through fear. His right-hand woman is the Detonator, a pyrokinetic who loves destruction for its own sake. Then there's Hawthorn, who creates deadly illusions, and the Puppeteer, who can control people's movements against their will. These villains aren't just powerful—they're deeply ideological, believing that absolute freedom (even if it means chaos) is better than the Prodigies' structured society. What makes them compelling is their backstory; many were once heroes who became disillusioned with the system.

Absolutely! 'All of Us Villains' blends romance with its dark, magical competition in a way that feels raw and real. The relationships here aren't your typical lovey-dovey stuff—they're messy, strategic, and sometimes heartbreaking. There's this electric tension between two competitors who keep toeing the line between allies and something more, their chemistry crackling even when they're trying to kill each other. Another pair shares a quieter, more tragic bond, their affection tangled up in family legacies and the tournament's brutal rules. The romance never overshadows the deadly game, but it adds delicious layers to every betrayal and alliance.