Bayonetta is a game series quite unlike most others. There are plenty of female characters in games that are a tad too self-indulgent, and though there's no denying there's still plenty of that in Bayonetta herself, she owns it. She's a dazzling design, somewhere between a witch and a dominatrix.
Of course, there are plenty of other characters in the series too, and they've had attention paid to their designs as well. They may not all be as over-the-top as Bayonetta, but they're still plenty iconic. Though not all characters are created equal, and sometimes you have to admit that some just look better than others.
9 Enzo
Enzo is a simple character. Introduced at the very beginning of both games as more of a comic relief character than anyone truly worthy of attention, he has a penchant for foul language and being dragged into all of Bayonetta's affairs.
His design, as such, is similarly simple. In the first game he wears a long jacket that opens at his stomach, his belt unbuckled and his glasses a shade too dark enough for him to think he looks when he really just isn't. To fit with the Christmas spirit of Bayonetta 2, he wears a thick, bright white jacket, his bowler hat swapped for a trilby. He's a bit better put together, but still a sad little man.
8 Luka
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With a namesake ripped directly from Devil May Cry, Luka Redgrave is smitten with Bayonetta, and convinced she's madly in love with him as well. Poor thing. Playing the sneaky journalistic photographer in the original, and lore depository in the sequel, he's actually quite kind-hearted — if not a bit insecure about himself.
He's somewhere between formal and casual in the original. He wears a relatively nice grey suit, with dark leather gloves coming almost up to his shoulders and leather thigh-high boots to match. All this is finished off with a starkly bright scarf. In the sequel, he's once again taking from DMC, sporting cowboy chaps, a jacket fit for an Australian hunter and some rolled-up sleeves. Oh, and the scarf is much less conspicuous this time, wrapped neatly around his neck.
7 Rosa
Rosa is where things get a little more...intense. She is Bayonetta's own mother, and most definitely looks the part. Met briefly in the game, with Bayonetta even confusing the woman for herself, she wields unique revolvers and committed the cardinal sin of having a child with a Lumen Sage.
Where Bayonetta feels somewhere between a witch and a dominatrix, Rosa is a nun and a prisoner. Dressed from head to toe in skin-tight glossy black, her face and hair are concealed, and her whole body is wrapped in belts and chains. Her clothes flare out at the hands and feet, revealing a crimson red on the underside of her clothes. She looks almost like she was being punished for her crimes but enjoyed the thrill a bit too much.
6 Loki
Making his appearance early on in Bayonetta 2, Loki is a striking character amidst the sea of pre-existing ones. Sure, you eventually learn he's actually connected to the god Aesir and as such involved in the destruction of the balance between realms, but it's frankly hard to look past the crime of him having a British accent.
He wears clothes resembling those of the residents of Noatun, though with his own personal touches. His silvered hair is done back in cornrows, and his orange and yellow garments stand out strongly in the sea of white of the rest of Noatun. Most notable though is the almost Yu-Gi-Oh-like millennium puzzle hanging out his neck. He gets extra points for being able to turn into a cute squirrel, too.
5 Aesir
Serving as the main antagonist in the game, Aesir is originally met multiple times as Loptr — both as a child and adult — before ascending to become Aesir, God of the realm of Chaos. Here, he is personified only by his hatred for humanity, and the obscene power granted to him to deal with them as he sees fit.
Aesir, well, doesn't actually wear any clothes. They're a god after all. Instead, they take on an ethereal form, glowing blue with symbols engraved across their whole body. Their hair is formed into a pyramid and they still retain golden jewelry on their wrists. Golden frames float behind, filled with the depths of the cosmos. Staring at them feels like absorbing reality and becoming undone. It's a pretty cool look.
4 Balder
Balder, or Father Balder as he's more aptly known in the original, is an important character. He's Bayonetta's father, and a pretty bad one at that. He's also almost brought about the destruction of the world twice, in a paradoxical kind of way. He means well though, which is ironically what brought about those end-of-the-world scenarios. Go figure.
Balder's appearance is hard to describe. He is pale beyond belief, his slicked-back hair giving a clean view of his wrinkled, monocled face. His white-and-gold clothing resembles that of a peacock, unfurling when he reveals his true form. In Bayonetta 2, he functions more as a rival, being a younger man with a mask like a blaring sun. His clothes take on a similar motif, though are lighter now, allowing him more ease of movement.
3 Rodin
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Rodin, lovingly named after a sculptor who made a statue called The Gates of Hell, is one of Bayonetta's closest confidantes. He's a fallen angel himself, quite possibly the most powerful, and spends his time punishing demons from Inferno to turn into weapons, letting Bayonetta handle the angels herself. It's a mutually beneficial arrangement.
Rodin also has the audacity to have four different designs. There's his New York style of a long brown jacket with a flared collar and heavy, untied boots. There's the Japan style, where he wears more fitting boots and swaps out the heavy jacket for a much lighter, long one. Then there's Father Rodin, a form almost identical to Balder's. Finally there's Rodin, The Infinite One, his horned, bewinged demon form. But the one thing he almost never loses? That smooth head and smoother sunglasses. He does look cool.
2 Jeanne
Jeanne is in many ways the polar opposite of Bayonetta. Dark blacks to stunning reds, black hair to white. Bayonetta's ladylike demeanor to Jeanne's harsh and abrupt tone. Hell, they even swap hair lengths between games. In truth, they'd change the world for each other. And even if it'll never be confirmed, she is very much Bayonetta's girlfriend.
Jeanne's original outfit is almost akin to that of a 1920's socialite. It's gaudy, but not too revealing of anything but wealth. Her neck is covered by fur with a watch piece at the center. The rest of her red suit is a single piece tied diagonally from the hip to the pack. In Bayonetta 2, she sports a dramatically altered appearance. Her tied-up hair has been swapped for hair long enough to be a cape. The socialite's wardrobe is dropped for a glossy red biker suit just littered with zippers. Every incarnation of her also has her signature red-framed glasses.
1 Bayonetta
There could've been no one else at number one. She's the namesake of the game, so of course she's the best design. Bayonetta has far surpassed her roots as a character-action game protagonist, becoming a cultural figure in her own right. The games never restrict you to her original outfit either, giving you plenty of options to dress up Bayonetta.
Many would argue that her original design is her greatest. The beehive hair is iconic, the tight bodysuit of hair leaving little to the imagination. By her chest is an opening cut in the shape of a crescent moon, with strands of wispy hair and umbral ornaments dangling about her. In Bayonetta 2 she sports a much more modern look, leaving her hair down but cutting it short, her collar frilled and her shoulders pointed. She has the same open back as before, but now with diamond openings along her legs. If Bayonetta has anything. it's variety.