The Legend of Korra is a fantasy action series that features plenty of powerful, compelling villains who are worthy to succeed the likes of Fire Lord Ozai and princess Azula. Although each of Korra‘s villains suffered defeat or even death in the end, these powerful antagonists accomplished a lot and really left a mark on the world.
A successful fictional villain is one who gets a lot of work done during their career, and they might still claim a partial victory even if they ultimately lose to the heroes. In fact, some villains continue to shape the world with their successes even after they are captured, redeemed, or simply killed in the main story, and that certainly describes several The Legend of Korra antagonists.
10 The Lieutenant Became Amon’s Favorite
The Equalist revolution inspired many non-benders to join the cause, and that included the goggles-wearing Lieutenant, a high-ranking Equalist voiced by Lance Henriksen. Not a lot is known about the Lieutenant, not even his name, but it’s clear that he had serious influence among the Equalists.
The Lieutenant was often trusted with the most important and delicate operations for the Equalist cause, and that must have been a real honor for him. However, the Lieutenant often suffered defeat in comical ways, including Korra’s polar bear dog Naga swatting him aside.
9 Bataar Jr. Was Kuvira’s Lieutenant
In Book Four: Balance, the very minor character Bataar Jr. became slightly more prominent when he was revealed to be a supporting villain. Bataar Jr. is the son of Suyin Beifong and her husband, Bataar Sr., and he was once loyal to his parents and Zaofu. But that changed when the Earth Kingdom fell apart.
Bataar Jr. signed up with Kuvira’s newly-formed Earth Empire and became one of her top-ranked officers. He was trusted with helping Kuvira run her newly-born nation, and he was also ordered to oversee Varrick’s weapons development program. Only a successful, accomplished officer would be given that duty.
8 Tahno Was A Pro-Bender Jock
The sport of pro-bending was introduced in Book One: Air as a fun way to use bending in the arena, but not all pro-bending athletes had a good sense of sportsmanship. The Waterbender Tahno was a minor villain who tended to cheat or harass his opponents, making him Korra’s bitter rival.
Tahno enjoyed much success as a popular and renowned pro-bender who won nearly all his matches, even against the Fire Ferrets. His success streak came to an end, though, when the masked villain Amon arrived and robbed him of his bending for good.
7 Tarrlok Tried To Take Over Republic City
The Southern Water Tribe native Tarrlok eventually became a councilman in the huge Republic City, and at first, he seemed like Korra’s ally in the battle against the Equalists. But Tarrlok was actually a schemer and villain who wanted to take over the entire city, and he wasn’t afraid to challenge Korra.
Tarrlok was a successful councilman for years, and he succeeded in briefly capturing Korra with his fearsome bloodbending. His campaign ended, though, when his masked brother Amon took his bending and detained him.
6 Varrick Profited From War
In Book Two: Spirits, Varrick the genius inventor decided to cash in on the brewing Water Tribe civil war. He stoked the flames of war and made sure to profit from it, and he even fooled the new Team Korra into thinking he was on their side.
Eventually, Mako caught on to Varrick’s plan, and Varrick was finally arrested and detained. He broke free, though, and resumed his operations in Zaofu with his assistant, Zhu Li. Varrick then shifted from villain to neutral to a true hero later on.
5 Hiroshi Sato Ran A Business & Supported Amon
Asami’s father Hiroshi built his own manufacturing empire from nothing as a young man. He went from shoe shiner to business magnate and never looked back, but he also has an intense hatred for benders, especially Firebenders, after losing his wife to a Firebender – the Equalist movement was perfect for him.
Hiroshi enjoyed huge success both as a businessman and a vital ally of Amon’s, designing and providing a remarkable variety of items and vehicles for the Equalist cause. With those machines, Amon might have actually won if it weren’t for Korra’s last-minute heroics.
4 Unalaq Formed A New Avatar
Korra’s uncle, Unalaq, enjoyed success for years as the Northern Water Tribe’s chief, but eventually, even that wasn’t enough for him. Unalaq had a strong interest in spirits, and he knew that spirits were out of balance. So, he sought his niece’s aid in restoring proper spiritual balance at last.
Unalaq convinced Korra to open the spirit portals, and then he launched his grand plan. He subjugated the Southern Water Tribe and freed Vaatu the evil spirit, and even fused with him to form the first and only dark Avatar. That was a remarkable accomplishment, but he was soon defeated by Korra’s energybending.
3 Amon United Republic City Against All Benders
The masked mastermind Amon was Korra’s first true challenge as the Avatar, and Amon pushed her to the limit. He is a bitter Waterbender and bloodbender who is convinced that bending brings out the worst in people, so he launched a successful revolt against the all-bender council of Republic City.
Amon briefly had a stranglehold on the city. He even put a mask on the Aang statue and fended off the United Forces fleet. He lost in the end to Korra, but his legacy remained all the same, and the bender council was never reformed, either. Instead, the non-bender president Raiko rose to power. In a way, Amon never lost.
2 Zaheer Turned The Earth Kingdom Upside Down
Ultimately, the Airbender anarchist Zaheer failed to assassinate the Avatar as intended, but he still accomplished a lot. To begin with, he managed to capture Korra and come very close to destroying her, which is more than even Amon and Unalaq can claim. And that’s just the start.
Zaheer mastered true flight, and is only the second person in history to do so. He also succeeded in assassinating Earth Queen Hou-Ting and reducing the rigid Earth Kingdom to chaos, exactly as intended. And even after his defeat, Zaheer found peace in the spirit world and helped Korra face her inner demons.
1 Kuvira Built An Empire
For years, the metalbender Kuvira served as a loyal part of Zaofu’s security team, but Kuvira changed her mind once the Earth Kingdom fell apart. She was inspired to take control of the situation and reforge the splintered Kingdom into an all-new Earth Empire, a monolithic state that could give the people hope and stability.
Though short-lived, the Earth Empire was a remarkable success, and aside from capturing Republic City, Kuvira accomplished everything she wanted to. She had an army, advanced weapons, unquestioned political power and a serious reputation, and she even defeated Korra in single combat before seizing Zaofu.