Comical character designs aside, Sailor Moon‘s villains are surprisingly deep. Nearly all of them are capable of and deserve redemption. Even the youma in the earlier seasons deserve to be helped rather than destroyed. Some villains were at the wrong place at the wrong time, and some have backstories and motivations that truly make them sympathetic.
The forces of evil like to go after good people to use them as puppets for their nefarious schemes. Sometimes, the big bads, who are truly evil, will manipulate and brainwash noble warriors; other times, they possess talented humans, turning them into monsters. Luckily, one of Sailor Moon‘s most powerful abilities is Moon Healing Escalation.
10 Wicked Lady
Wicked Lady, Chibi-Usa’s evil persona, deserves redemption if only for her amazing fashion. Tuxedo Mask and the Sailor Scouts help prevent her from killing people while she’s possessed, and she never defeats the Sailor Scouts.
It’s not Chibi-Usa’s fault that she turns into Wiseman’s minion. Wiseman successfully manipulated warriors ten times her age. Chibi-Usa’s descent into evil amounted to little more than a haute-couture temper tantrum. The second she reverts to her former self, she tips the scales in the Scouts’ favor against Wiseman.
9 Professor Tomoe
Germatoid possessed Professor Tomoe, turning him into a warped scientist. He still looks mostly like himself but for his luminous, rounded eyes and Joker-like rictus.
Tomoe isn’t a mindless drone but a charismatic antagonist. He made a deal with a dark force to save his daughter. Though he helps an evil force, it’s sympathetic that he did so out of love for his child. It’s that fatherly love that lets Hotaru break free from Mistress 9. He deserves the second chance he got at life with the reborn Hotaru.
8 Alan And Anne
Alan and Anne are a good example of what a former villain does with the rest of their life. Redeemed villains often die right after their redemption. Sacrificing for the greater good is noble, but it’s more interesting to see what a villain does after they’ve learned better.
Alan and Anne cause a lot of harm working for the Doom Tree, but ultimately, they care about each other more than the Tree. Anne comes back to life after sacrificing herself to save Alan, and the two go on to make a different life in another world.
7 Koan
Koan is Sailor Mars’ foil in the Specter Sisters quartet. Appropriately, Sailor Mars (who is normally the harshest critic of the Scouts in any circumstance) is the one who sees goodness in Koan and wants to help turn her from evil to good.
Like Sailor Mars, Koan is more sassy than outright evil. She’s curious and has sincere moments with Usagi and Rei. The ’90s anime adds more to her character than there originally is in the manga, where Koan has little to no character development.
6 Fiore
Poor Fiore was at the wrong place at the wrong time when the Xenian flower attached to him, using him as a host. There was hate in his heart, which allowed the Xenian flower to join with him, but his pain is understandable as he was lonely from the time he was small.
The only thing Fiore really wants is to be with Mamoru again. The Xenian flower influences him to do terrible things to get to his goal. Though he nearly kills Sailor Moon, her love for Mamoru reminds him of his own. That realization, and the force of his own love for Mamoru, help him oust the Xenian flower. In the end, he fixes any wrong he did.
5 Nephlite
In the ’90s anime, Nephlite switches sides because he cares about Naru, who he was trying to target for the Dark Kingdom. She reminds him of the kind of person he used to be before the Dark Kingdom brainwashed him. His protective nature arises, and he risks everything to save Naru.
Protecting Naru costs Nephlite everything, and even in his last moments, he only wants to comfort her. He has a different sort of redemption in the manga, but it’s nice to see a bit more of the original Shitennou nature in action with the ’90s Nephlite.
4 Sailor Galaxia
Sailor Galaxia was once the most powerful Sailor Guardian, and then she became their strongest foe. Chaos manipulates Galaxia to commit wide-sweeping, devastating crimes. In the manga, Chaos convinces Galaxia that she needs to control the crucible of creation, the Galaxy Cauldron. Galaxia rectifies her misdeeds by sacrificing herself to finish off Chaos by removing her golden bracelets.
In the anime, Galaxia is even more sympathetic. Her union with Chaos comes out of a desperate attempt to destroy Chaos rather than through persuasion. She helps Sailor Moon defeat Chaos with her Star Seeds; then Sailor Moon cleanses her.
3 The Four Shitennou
Once Prince Endymion’s Four Heavenly Kings, Jadeite, Kunzite, Zoisite, and Nephrite serve the Dark Kingdom for the entire first arc. Sailor Moon Crystal follows the original manga closely, highlighting how the Shitennou are counterparts to the Inner Senshi.
They are formidable enemies to the bitter end, keeping the Inner Senshi from saving Sailor Moon and the possessed Endymion. Though they hurt the Senshi so much, they once defended the Moon Kingdom with Endymion, and the Senshi understandably try to remind them of that. It’s beautiful that the Inner Senshi who once loved them are the ones to restore their memories.
2 Prince Demande And Saphir
Wiseman manipulates Prince Demande and Saphir into going against the Scouts. Saphir is the first to suspect Wiseman. When he tries to warn his brother, he pays for it dearly. When he dies, he’s free of Wiseman but deserves a better chance at life.
Prince Demande loves Sailor Moon, which helps him finally shake Wiseman’s hold. He has many reasons to turn against Wiseman and is instrumental in saving Sailor Moon. His backstory with her is so compelling that it’s a shame he couldn’t continue fighting for the forces of good after this arc.
1 Evil Endymion
There is nothing more unnatural in Sailor Moon than watching Prince Endymion turn against his princess. When Beryl turns him, brainwashing him as she did his Shitennou, he’s made even more powerful by the Black Crystal.
Though Endymion is evil for several episodes, there are some instances where he barely seems invested in defeating the Scouts. In the finale, when Sailor Moon tries to heal him, he nearly kills her. Their memories over the locket he gave her on the Moon awaken him and he more than makes up for any harm he caused by dealing Beryl a killing blow.