5 best heels in the WWE right now

The heroes of the WWE are only as good as the heels and villains which oppose them at every turn. It's part of the reason why both Batman and the Joker are among the best comic book characters of all time.

Since WWE Superstars are very similar to comic book characters, the same applies in WWE. There are, however, several different types of heels that heroes often have to overcome. You have the monster heels on one hand and on the other hand, there are the smug, arrogant loudmouths.

Heels often are better champions because once they are toppled, it raises the profile of the heroes or faces. With WWE's roster being as deep as it's ever been, there is no shortage of extremely talented performers that you either hate or love to hate.

Some do their jobs so well that they are cheered on almost as fondly as the faces they are battling. The ability to tell a story on the mic is just as important as telling the story in the ring. With that being said, here are the top five heels currently in WWE.

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#1 Daniel Bryan

His turn as 'the Planet's Champion' was a brilliant masterpiece of heel work.

Daniel Bryan is one of the most beloved performers in WWE history. His ascent to the WWE Championship at WrestleMania 30 was one of the best storylines of all time. Fans routinely cheered the loudest for him when he was the SmackDown GM instead of some of the talent.

The work he had to do in order to turn the WWE Universe against him was masterful. He first attacked and defeated the beloved AJ Styles during their title match before Survivor Series last year.

Once he fully embraced the dark side, Bryan's mastery of the craft reached a new level. Taking his real life status as a vegan and environmentalist, Bryan routinely chastised the WWE Universe as wasteful, impotent and mindless.

Environmentalists are fine, but once they start to impose their beliefs on anyone, like when any subculture does, they become intolerable. The best heels get you to boo at them because of their work, not because you dislike the character. Bryan has done exactly that and is continuing his fine work as a member of the Planet's Tag Team Champions with Rowan.

#2 Shane McMahon

McMahon's heeling has spilled onto both Raw and SmackDown.

Drew McIntyre could have easily had a spot here but since he's resorted to being Shane McMahon's lackey recently, he doesn't get a spot. Instead, the man he is currently aligned with - Shane McMahon - gets the spot.

The whole 'chastise your foe for doing everything you did' tactic usually always works and McMahon has been following his father's footsteps since he turned heel at Fastlane. Attacking George Mizanin and the Miz on the road to WrestleMania 35 helped up his profile as a bad guy because although people have done the same to Vince McMahon, Mizanin is not an active Superstar.

Although I'd prefer actual Superstars get more air time, Shane-O-Mac has effectively enraged the WWE Universe every time he trots out to the ring. Forcing announcer Greg Hamilton to constantly rehash his intro is another good facet of McMahon's current megalomania. His run kicked off with the whole 'Best in the World' tournament from last year, so at least something came from that. Will it come full circle and end in Jeddah once again?

#3 Sami Zayn

Zayn, like the best performers, is believable as both a good guy and a bad guy.

Sami Zayn might have run his course as the 'never-say-die' babyface that he had portrayed since his days in NXT. He had already proven his ability in the ring, but once he revealed some more of his personality during his partnership with Kevin Owens, his heel potential started to show.

The above picture and his attitude while reading the letter to the fans was hilarious to people who respect the effort some performers put into their characters. Once he was injured and missed close to ten months, it allowed a soft reset for his character.

He returned to action the night after WrestleMania 35 and battled as a face against Finn Balor. But immediately following the match, he turned heel by lambasting the WWE Universe. Zayn wanted to blame the fans for not holding themselves accountable for their actions.

Now on a weekly basis now, Zayn has found new ways to both troll the crowd (in his hometown of Montreal) and with his smugness during his ring entrances. His dancing is hilarious and good heels can turn almost anything bad into gold. This was on full display during his 'Electric Chair' segment.

Although he's still been losing matches, Zayn is still being placed in top-level feuds and nailing his promos during them. Since his return, he's battled for both the Intercontinental Championship and the Universal Championship against Seth Rollins.

#4 Brock Lesnar

This image alone makes Lesnar a good heel.

If Lesnar hadn't returned to shock everyone at Money in the Bank, then he wouldn't be among the heels on this list. But since his mere visage can be seen as a slap in the face to some fans and full-time performers, he has to be on this list.

I wish he was gone and letting the deep roster have their chances to shine. But he's here (for now) and will be until he either fails in his cash in or captures another title to show off.

He was already a polarizing performer before even returning to the WWE and since he won MITB, fans have another reason to shoot daggers with their eyes in his general direction. His dancing with the boom box was a rare funny moment and showed that he wasn't just a 'jump-in-place' destroyer.

Heels and faces come in all shapes and sizes, and whether you like him or hate him, Lesnar plays the arrogant jock heel extremely well. There needs to be a fine line walked with Lesnar this time around, however, because having him win another major title will likely get some fans to hate him - and not in a good way.

#5 Kevin Owens

No one in WWE should ever trust Owens again.

If you had a list of the top all-around performers in WWE, Owens would have to be close to topping it. Despite his size, he is extremely agile and pulls off as many high-flying moves as a man he has been tormenting recently - Kofi Kingston.

Despite the fact that he's a great heel because of his knack of attacking beloved faces from behind and backstage, Owens comes into his own when on the mic. He can make you care about whatever he says whether it's directed at his opponent or the fans.

It was fun to see him as a face once he returned to WWE. That's the sign of a truly great performer - someone who can get the fans behind them as both a heel and a face. While the fans were initially mad at him for basically usurping Kingston's title shot at Fastlane, it didn't take long for the fans to cheer Owens in his new role of fan favorite.

That, of course, didn't last long because of his usual telegraphed attack on his friend. Because if there is one thing that Owens has proven in his WWE tenure is that if he's nice to you, you will likely have a knife in your back sooner rather than later. He needs a shirt with DTO on the front - 'Don't Trust Owens.'