Zeba: The Kaijin That Became Emperor

Though Maskman is a really old series but Zeba is one of the most unique villains. Why? Well at the start, we wouldn't know he was but a series monster himself hiding behind a guise as the Emperor. So what's the real deal with him?

In Maskman, he rules the Tube Kingdom and made it as inhuman as possible, claiming to the throne and all was but who he was. His origins were left hidden until the end but to some fans, he was already obviously NOT HUMAN.

Throughout the series, he always aimed to conquer the world and transform it into his own dark image. He was shown merciless and cruel to his subordinates while fearing whatever secret of his may come which made the Maskmen wonder why. He always had his own motives behind every plot like when he allows Kiros to run free or when he decides to kill Baraba.

It was eventually revealed later on after Igamu's rather "startling revelation" to the Maskmen (but not to the audience, the flashbacks show she is a girl and her twin sister Ial hid the secret but pretended not to know at first) that also revealed a rumor he was actually a monster himself. The rumor was proven real later on when the Igamu Dragon dropped the secret behind his birth after Ial was released.

So it did turn out to be that beneath the mask was an evil monster, the son of the monster empress and cannibalized his dying mother to become powerful like his presumably slain father. What really was creepy was how through an obviously cheap disguise did he rule the empire? Perhaps he looked like a "god" to them that he was so feared.

He was one evil person as he decided to sacrifice his remaining troops for his own purpose but the prophecy of the twins defeated him. The Maskmen finally defeated this kaijin and ended his reign as the very first sentai monster to rule over the enemy forces.