Oh villains, they dominate our entertainment media, and sometimes steal the movie or show from our main protagonist. My favorite class of villain by far is the comic book villain. Those big bad guys that originated from comics, then transcended into the media through multiple TV shows and movies. Over the years comic villains continue to captivate audiences with their plans to disrupt the established order, bring the hero’s to their knees and rule the world. There are lots of memorable ones out there, but this is a list of my own personal top 10 favorite comic book villains, not a list of who’s the most popular. Now I’m definitely going to add some variety to this list, otherwise it would be overstuffed with nothing but Batman and Spider-Man villains.
#10 The Shredder (Ninja Turtles)
“Today is
the end of days for you ... and for all those who stand by you.”
Say what you
will about the Ninja Turtles franchise, their corny, their silly, their
products of the 80’s, and I still like them on some level. More to the point, I
really like their main adversary ... the Shredder. Considering how silly the
concept of Ninja Turtles is, this guy could have easily been a lame duck bad
guy like from Power Rangers, but the creators behind Shredder gave him a much
appreciated level of menace, and a darker over tone. Just look at the guy, he’s
like a Samurai Darth Vader, which is awesome. Sure he’s had his goofier
renditions like in the classic 80’s cartoon, but every other portrayal of the
character from the comics, to the movies, and the latter day TV shows have
always been pretty cool. The Shredder really shined in the 1990 Ninja Turtle
movie, and was arguably one of the coolest comic book movie villains of the
time. There’s not much depth or complexity to the character, but he’s certainly
memorable, and a perfect start for my countdown.
#9 The Governor (The Walking Dead)
“In this
life now, you kill or you die ... or you die and you kill”
When the
world is stuck in an apocalyptic zombie crisis, the Governor is the last man
you’d want to meet. He’s a ruthless survivor, rules whatever land he can with
an iron fist, and in many ways is far more dangerous then the undead zombies
roaming the planet. Honestly, I haven’t read any of the actual Walking Dead
comics, but from what I’ve seen of this guy in the hit AMC TV series, he
absolutely disserves to be amongst some of my favorite comic book villains. In
the show he’s played by David Morrissey, who is just spot on in the role, and
finds a perfect balance between real scares and wicked charms. While he’s both a skilled fighter and expert shooter, his most dangerous weapons come from his
cunning mind and silver tongue. He’s a man with complex character turmoil, but
has also brought destruction and tragedy to the shows surviving hero’s on
nuclear levels. No one else makes the eye patch and black coat look as
intimidating as him.
#8 Sabretooth (X-Men) & (Wolverine)
“One shall
fall by the others hand ... our destiny can’t be changed.”
Every
classic superhero has an evil opposite ... for Batman it’s the Joker, for
Spider-Man it’s the Scorpion, and for Wolverine it’s Sabretooth. A beastly half
man, half wolf mutant with sharp claws and the same healing powers of Wolverine,
which makes him the perfect opponent. Throw in the fact that their brothers,
and it makes their feud all the more exciting and personal. Throughout all the comics,
movies and TV adaptations, these two have hated each other’s guts, and their
battles are awesome. Not much else to say about Sabretooth, he’s just the
perfect adversary to go against Wolverine, and it’s always a thrill when these
two wild men clash.
#7 The Joker (Batman)
“Let’s put a
smile on that face.”
No list of
greatest comic book villains is complete without the famous clown prince of
crime. Like the Joker even needs an introduction, he’s Batman’s most iconic
adversary, and personal opposite. One is a noble hero who hides in a dark form,
while the other actually is a heartless monster that hides under a bright and
colorful appearance. Batman and the Joker might just be the most perfectly
matched hero and villain in all of comic book history, and just about every
portrayal of the famous villain is outstanding. From Cesar Romero, to Jack Nicholson,
to Mark Hamill, to Heath Ledger, the Joker has been brought to life by several
talented actors in all forms of media from movies, to video games, to animated
TV shows. If I had to pick a favorite, it would be Mark Hamill from the
animated series, and “Batman Mask of the
Phantasm.” That’s not to put down any of the other talents, they all give
great credit to the character, and have further launched the characters
popularity into the mainstream. I have to admit, even though The Joker is the
most iconic of Batman’s adversaries, I personally don’t think he’s the best, in
fact there are two others yet to come on this list that I think are just a pinch
better. With that said, the Joker will forever be immortalized in the villain
hall of fame.
#6 Kingpin (Spider-Man) & (Daredevil)
“This city
isn’t a caterpillar, it’s not going to spin a cocoon and wake up a butterfly.
It crumbles and fades ... it needs to die before it can be reborn.”
One of the
scariest things on the planet is someone who has fear, and has learned to
master it. The only thing that can be more terrifying is a psychopath with
fear, and has control over it. Daredevil is a superhero who has shed his fear,
and by contrast, his greatest enemy uses fear as a driving force ... both against
his enemies, and for himself. To the people of New York, Wilson Fisk is nothing
more than a respected Philanthropist, but under his guise is the mighty ruler
of all the cities underworld crimes. The Kingpin is very different from your
typical comic book villain. He doesn’t have any super powers, or a costume,
he’s just a man who always has an ace up his sleeve ... usually in the form of
having everyone you love with a big gun pointed to their heads. Also, while
Daredevil is commonly is main adversary, he’s also one of Spider-Man’s greatest
foes too. He was the biggest reoccurring villain in the classic 90’s Spider-Man
cartoon, and voiced very well in that show by the late Roscoe Lee Browne. He
was also played very well by the late Michael Clarke Duncan in the live action
2003 “Daredevil” movie. Vincent
D’Onofrio’s portrayal of the Kingpin in the 2015 “Daredevil” TV series is probably the most human ... yet most
terrifying portrayal of the character I’ve seen thus far.
#5 Slade (Teen Titans)
“I will
never stop, not now, not ever, I am the thing that keeps you awake at night,
and the evil that haunts every dark corner of your mind.”
The Teen Titans are no strangers to powerful and older adversaries, but Slade Wilson, also known as Deathstroke, is in a different class of villain, and Robins personal enemy. Slade has gone from anti-hero, to small time assassin, to leader of a criminal empire, and is always large and in charge. This characters modern day fame ignited with the animated “Teen Titans” TV show in the early 2000’s, and sense has become one of my absolute favorite bad guys from the comic book universe. He was a villain shrouded in mystery, his voice could give you chills, and he knew that the most effective way to take out the hero’s is by turning them against one another, usually in very violent ways. Ron Perlmans sinister voice acting from the animated TV series was a huge credit to the character. His legacy has continued through various Batman video games, and he also stood out once again as a threatening adversary in the 2014 animated film “Son of Batman”. I swear, this guy needs to be featured in a live action movie or TV series, because he’s just too cool to leave on the animated drawing board.
#4 Two-Face (Batman)
“You either
die a hero, or ... you live to see yourself become the villain.”
Personally, I think the most interesting villains are the ones born from tragedy, and Two-Face is perhaps the most depressing of all. District Attorney Harvey Dent represented a chance for peace in a corrupt city, but he eventually stood out as the biggest failure of Batman’s career, as well as a dark reminder of the price that comes from standing up to evil. Like most of Batman’s foe’s, there have been many different renditions of this character, but the core concept still remains the same. This was once a respected man that did great serves to his city, even aided the hero on several occasions. However, after one unfortunate event, everything changed. Now his scared face represents the two sides of society ... justice and corruption. Unfortunately, in the case of Two-Face, he’s about as corrupt as they get. Most portrayals of the character from the TV shows and films have been stealer. In fact I’d go so far to say that Aaron Eckhart’s version of Two-Face from the 2008 film “The Dark Knight” is my favorite theatrical portrayal of any of batman’s classic foes.
#3 Doctor Octopus
(Spider-Man)
“Those who
do not share my vision ... will be crushed by it.”
From
organizing the sinister six, to causing the death of Gorge Stacy, to his
sinister plots as “The Master Planer”, Doctor Octopus still stands as one of
Spider-Mans deadliest foes, and personally my favorite of all his classic
adversaries. There’s just something about an evil doctor with four deadly
robotic arms fused to his back that makes him so iconic and memorable. Just the
fact that both spiders and octopuses have eight appendages makes them a perfect
match. He’s the villain I remember most from the classic 80’s cartoon and is
usually the one marked alongside the wall-crawler, at least at Universal.
Naturally, it was his appearance in the 2004 movie “Spider-Man 2” that launched him into absolute greatness, and
secured his reputation as one of Hollywood’s greatest comic book movie
villains.
#2 Mr. Freeze
(Batman)
“Rest in
peace my love, the monster who took you from me will soon learn that revenge is
a dish ... best served COLD!”
Batman
probably has the most famous rouge gallery of villains out of any superhero,
and of all his classic adversaries, Mr. Freeze has always been my personal
favorite. Now obviously there have been several different variations of the
character over the years. Sometimes he’s portrayed as a ruthless monster, like
in the early 2000’s show “The Batman”.
Other times he’s been portrayed as a comedic goofball bad guy like in the 1997
movie “Batman and Robin”. However,
when the character is done right, he just outshines all the others ... well, in
my opinion. Paul Dini’s conception of the character from the 90’s animated
Batman series is the perfect example of this character done right. In this
story, Mr. Freeze has a frozen wife who could possibly be saved from a critical
disease, but every time the chance came to save her, the opportunity slips
through his fingers. When compared to Batman’s tragic back-story, Mr. Freeze
actually has it far worse. Batman’s parents are only dead, he can morn them and
move on with his life, but Mr. Freeze cant morn his wife, nor can he save her.
He’s literally and figuratively frozen in a situation that he just can’t
escape. The thing that’s eating away at his soul, and making his heart so cold
isn’t greed, power or vengeance ... it’s HOPE! That’s a brilliant concept for a
villain, and when you combine that with his menacing voice, signature gun, and
all around awesome design, he honestly stands out to me like the Darth Vader of
Batman enemies. Even the versions or Mr. Freeze that ignore his complex
back-story can still be very exciting to watch, as he’s more than a match for
our dynamic hero.
Before I
reveal my #1 favorite comic book villain, here are some honorable mentions ...
The Scorpion (Spider-Man)
Apocalypse (X-Men)
Loki (The Avengers) & (Thor)
Venom (Spider-Man)
Bane (Batman)
And my all
time favorite comic book villain is ...
#1 Magneto
(X-Men)
“They wish
to cure us, but I say to you ... we are the cure.”
Villains
just don’t get any better than Magneto, he’s powerful, methodical, tragic,
heroic, complex, frightening, intimidating, vengeful, and just about everything
you need for a great character. He’s like the Shakespeare villain of all comic
book villains, and is every bit as sophisticated and classy as his characters
too. The most frightening villains always seem the most human, but are always
hiding something sinister. Shaped by the atrocities of world war II, Magneto’s
contempt for human kind is far more vengeful, and makes his goals to liberate
mutants from their human oppressors all the more personal. Magneto is scary
both as a metaphor, and as one who believes he’s taking the right actions against
others who in his mind should be branded as villains. Taking his character
another step further is his relationship slash rivalry with his adversaries the
X-Men. Most villains just want to see the hero dead, but in the case of
Magneto, it actually tares at his soul to wage war against people who where his
closest friends, and almost brothers in a common struggle. Ian Mckellen’s performance
as Magneto in the live action film series is “in my opinion” one of the
greatest movie villain portrayals of all time. Whether it’s the comics,
animated TV shows or theatrical movies, Magneto is hands down my favorite comic
book villain, and personally one of my all time favorite bad guys.
The End
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