This Is The Biggest Villain On 'Game Of Thrones'

Let's get this out of the way, people. Everyone on Game of Thrones is just a wee bit villainous, if not a full fledged demon. To be fair, there's a bit of good and evil in us all, and the show simply plays to that in a more dramatic way. So, yes, villainy is common. But, who is Game of Thrones' biggest villain? Well, that just depends on what your definition of villainy is. After all, the show has a fairly significant range of dangerous, fear-inducing characters.

You could argue that the wild boar was Robert Baratheon's biggest villain in Season 1. Or that big sister Sansa was Arya's biggest enemy way back when. But, we're not talking menial sins, here. We're approaching Season 6 of the series, and everything is more intricate and intense and dastardly than it was at the start. At this point, Ned Stark's decapitation seems like one of the lesser things that fans have had to bear witness to over the years. Speaking of which, Stark's executioner, King Joffrey, was offed awhile ago, which is why the villain slot has been left vacant at all.

There is Ramsay. Many liken Theon's tormentor to Joffrey. In a way, I suppose the two are similar, with their sadistic and unjust punishments. All things considered, that should technically make Ramsay the new worst villain, right? Wrong. Here's why: yes, Ramsay is even more heinous than Joffrey, but he's too heinous. We thought we had seen it all when he dehumanized, mutilated, and tortured Theon, but his unspeakable act of raping Sansa proves the complete and utter lack of humanity or likability in him. Ramsay is pure evil, but he isn't Game of Thrones's greatest villain because to be the ultimate villain there has to be something redeemable. You have to love to hate them, or love to fear them, or at the very least, you have to be able to stomach them for thrill's sake, and I don't feel any sort of love or excitement for Ramsay. I don't think he can be the biggest villain, mostly because I just fast forward right through his scenes.

So, who is GOT's biggest current villain? Well, it's the Night's King, of course. A character who hasn't even had to utter a single word to instill within me a fear I didn't think I could possess for a fictional character, let alone a CGI-made one. I have never been more terrified, or thrilled, or exhilarated by a villain than I was when he devastated Hardhome. But, more so than that was the terror I felt, and still feel, when I think of the scene when the Night's King stared at Jon Snow from afar for an unsettlingly long moment.

Another reason the Night's King, and on a greater scale, the White Walkers, are GOT's greatest villains is because of the magnitude of their destruction. The Night's King is not just Jon Snow's threat (if he's even still alive) — he's Westeros's threat. We all know how common dying is in that world, and not only does the leader cause death, but he then manipulates those he kills to cause even more. What could possibly be more terrifying than an omnipotent being who uses death to cause death? Um, practically nothing — hence why he gets the unnerving title of GOT's biggest current villain.

Images: HBO; Giphy