In anime, a quick and easy way to show how evil the villains are is to give them a taste for human blood. Of course, vampires are probably the most famous example of bloodsuckers in anime, if not all fiction in general. In addition to vampires, anime is known to sometimes portray certain yokai, oni, and even witches as having a thirst for blood. Even jiangshi, Chinese zombies that are traditionally warded off by blood, are sometimes portrayed as bloodsuckers in some stories themselves.
Far scarier than monsters are human villains who have developed a taste for blood. More often than not, this is because they want to humiliate the hero who they’ve defeated in combat. Other times, they lose themselves in the heat of the battle and wind up biting off more than they can chew… literally.
10 Grimm Dowa: This Witch Drains Women Of Their Blood To Disguise Herself As A Human
The episode “The Crystal Ball” features a witch who imprisons a princess to feed on her blood to maintain her human form. In the process, the princess is reduced to a rotting corpse. It’s established that the witch killed the hero’s mother in a similar manner and stole her identity. Twenty men are also said to have died trying to save the princess.
Ultimately, it is the hero who finds the titular crystal ball, the one thing that can destroy the witch, and rescues the princess. Interestingly enough, the blood-drinking bit was added to the anime and wasn’t part of the original story, where the witch was the hero’s mother and a minor character.
9 One-Punch Man: The Monsters Association Has Its Own Vampire
Pureblood is a Mysterious Being and part of the Monster Association. He is a literal vampire and, as his name implies, feeds on blood. This gives him regenerative powers. That said, not all blood tastes the same to him as he was disgusted by Zombieman’s. He claims to come from a distinguished line of vampires and his powers are impressive. However, Zombieman was able to take him down in a fight.
8 One Piece: Rob Lucci Is As Blood Thirsty As A Leopard
Rob Lucci is an antagonist in the One Piece franchise who, thanks to the Devil Fruit, has the power to transform into a leopard.
Not only does this form make it easy for him to draw blood, he seems to have a fondness for the stuff. He was once shown licking the blood off his claws after using them to pierce Luffy.
7 Inuyasha: Even The Other Moth Yokai Thinks Gatenmaru Is Creepy
Blood consumption isn’t inherently evil in the Inuyasha universe as Myoga, a friendly little flea yokai, is treated as a mere nuisance. Not to mention, he comes in handy when someone needs poison drained out of them. Mosquito and bat yokai are also known to drink blood, but the “good” ones are known to prefer animal blood over human blood.
That said, plenty of villains use it for rituals and drinking. Gatenmaru is one of the more notable, being a moth yokai who can feed on blood using his long tongue. He is even known to drain women dry. Other moth yokai, including Gatenmaru’s own brother, find this habit repulsive, implying that it’s not a necessity for his species. Most famously, Gatenmaru was so disgusting that he scared Inuyasha out of wanting to be a full yokai.
6 Shaman King: Boris Tepes Dracula Isn’t A Vampire But Still Acts Like One
Boris Tepes Dracula is said to be a distant descendant of the historical Dracula. He is in fact not a vampire. On the contrary, his family’s main objective is getting revenge on humanity for treating them like vampires.
Ironically enough, his revenge scheme involves claiming to be a vampire and using his shamanic powers to become more vampiric, to the point he’s able to drain blood. He does it using his bat wings, turning his victims into dust. He was also shown biting Lyserg’s neck. Ultimately, he is impaled by Archangel Michael.
5 My Hero Academia: Himiko Toga Is Really Into Blood
Himiko Toga is the adorable member of the League of Villains. She is rather obsessed with blood, being shown to outright crave it. Her mask even comes with needles that help her draw blood.
It turns out her Quirk requires her to ingest a person’s blood in order to take on their appearance. This might be a shout out to the heroine of Tokimeki Tonight, a vampiric magical girl who could transform into anyone she bites. Stain, who has the Bloodcurdle Quirk, also needs to feed on his victim’s blood for his powers to work. Unlike Himiko, he isn’t shown to actually crave it.
4 Naruto: Hidan Needs Blood To Keep His Immortality
Many Naruto characters seem to have a fondness for blood. Take for example Anko who licks the blood off of an open wound on Naruto’s face after an attack. Hidan is one half of the Zombie Pair and needs to acquire blood from his targets in order to attack them by forming a link between his body and theirs. Blood also appears to help him maintain his immortality and he’ll become mortal again if he stops killing. While he can survive a beheading unlike an actual vampire, it turns out to be his ultimate undoing.
3 Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: Dio Brando Pairs Blood With Red Wine
Dio Brando is one of the main antagonists of the JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure franchise. He’s a vampire, so human blood is a natural delicacy for him. That said, he doesn’t mind a glass of red wine to go along with it. Vampires are a tricky subject in this series. Their fangs are mostly aesthetic as they drain blood with their hands. Blood isn’t exactly a necessity for them, but it does enable them to regenerate, healing wounds and maintaining youth. While they can turn other people into fellow vampires, they prefer turning their victims into mindless zombies.
2 Black Clover: The Witch Queen Uses Blood Magic To Control & Create Blood
The Witch Queen uses Blood Magic in a world where every character can wield a different element, allowing her to both create and control blood, but her powers are not as straightforward as it seems. In the sense of using blood literally, she’s able to manipulate and even transfer other people’s blood for some of her spells. On the other hand, she actually has the power to create blood and use it to heal, effectively making her the opposite of a vampire.
1 Frieza: If Blood Just Happens To Get On Him, He’ll Lick It Up
Frieza is one of the most famous villains of the Dragon Ball franchise and one of the most famous villains in anime history. Frieza doesn’t actively look for blood to drink, but he does seem to enjoy his opponents getting bloody when facing them in a fight. And if some blood gets on his face, he won’t hesitate to lick it off. That’s one way to savor a victory.
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