Who are the greatest (?) super villains?

[Thirdbase]

Ok members of Herodom. I will admit to not being a comic book fanatic, I read a few titles about 15 years ago, but I am interested in who the greatest villains are? I would prefer those grown on earth, as opposed those like Gallactus, but all are welcome. So list you favorites and let me now why.

[Mightybec]

The Joker's my fav. I just love a looney gageteer.

*note: to all you batman villain haters :mad:

Mightybec

[Agent X]

Doctor Doom - a gypsy with a mystic background (and sorceror supreme potential), megalomaniacal supra-genius in menacing armor who conquered a small country and made the people like it, has a personal code of honor and plenty of style, a complex history rife with potential for future stories

[Vondy]

First: Pulp Villians

Herr Doktor Kruger (from the G-8 pulps). This is the quintessential evil german scientist. He was the first... and his evil plans were truly creative. One of my favorite was when he defrosted a band of frozen viking berserkers and loosed them on the allies.

Fu Manchu. There is no other. Crime Lord. Genius. Master of hypnotism. The guy had class... and he was more interesting than the hero who chased him. After all, he was the first villian to star in his own title.

Second: Comic Villians

Lex Luthor comes in at the top of my list. Who else can take on superman and have such consistent results? Whats more, he's the only villian I know to sustain a victory over a long period of time. He's the President of the United States! He's a brilliant scientist and tactitian who has leadership abilities. He's pushed the combined might of the JLA with his brain more than once. What's more: he's bald. Telley Savales never looked so good.

Doctor Doom. He's evil, but he has some redeeming qualities. He's probably smarter than his nemesis, Reed, but has more passion that gets in the way. Even Sue Richards noted he was warmer than her husband when she was forced to interact with him on a personal level. He's got style -- the armor and cape rock. He's got his own country. And here's the real kicker: he defeated the beyonder in Secret Wars No. 10. If it weren't for script immunity he'd have wasted the FF a long time ago.

Sabertooth. I just like the guy. He's nasty. He goes head to head with wolverine. Some of the best comic fights I've seen are between them... like when he came for Betsy at the Xavier Mansion.

Raz Gul -- unlike the Joker who has become a homicidal maniac over the years Raz Gul has style, major plans, and a hot daughter who loves the Bat. It makes sense when he comes back because its always a major story arc. He's not another serial asylum escape. What's more... he's got some cool toys. Anybody with massive zeppelins rocks in my book. I sum it up: derigible.

[Trebuchet]

Mojo Jojo! He's a classic supervillain: Bizarre overdone schemes, overinflated ego, long-standing relationship with his opponents, wonderful way of repeating himself in different ways ("Stop! Cease and desist! Do not do anything more!").

Of course, that means I admit actually enjoying the Powerpuff Girls on Cartoon Network. Mea culpa. :D

[death tribble]

I back the inclusion of the Joker. One of the great lines I saw in DC was when the villains wanted to scare themselves and each other, they told Joker stories. I have seen stuff from him when Batman started and upto date. One of the iconic and most dangerous of all villains.

Dr Doom. As you never know what to expect from him as countless appearances show in the FF and elsewhere.

Mr Sinister. I read the X-Men and have enjoyed the look of this character and his background scheming.

The Hellfire Club. great opponents of the X-Men.

Juggernaut. Has had good runs against several people including Spiderman who trapped him in cement for a while, and Thor who Juggernaut hit with his own hammer by catching a ride back on it.

Killer Frost. Followed a lot of her stories in Firestorm and I like her.

Darkseid. Uh oh.

Fantomas as in the books by Allain and Souvestre or in film.

Dr Mabuse. German arch villain again on film.

Fu Manchu as depicted by Christopher Lee and particularly the earlier films.

Moriarty. Now there is a villain. Worthy foe to Sherlock Holmes.

The Master in Dr Who. Particularly as played by Roger Delgado against Jon Pertwee.

[MarkusDark]

I would say that Xanatos from Gargoyles was rather sweet. The ultimate puppet master who wanted the secret of immortality. Builds himself a Gargoyle battle suit and minions, etc. All and all, a well rounded villian.

[Klytus]

A lot of good ones have been mentioned already, so I can;t avoid repeating a few.

1) The Joker. Hands down, he's the best of the worst. Not a trace of super-powers anywhere, but a briliant mind unhindered by ethics, morals or sanity. He can match wits with the best of them, and has even brought the DCU to its knees.

2) Lex Luthor. I like him much better after post-Crisis. Again, he is the example of how a normal man can shine in a universe flooded with super-powered pajama-boys.

3) Magneto. Not for his powers (which I do like), but his complex depth of character. His cynical disregard for normal humans is well founded once you know his story. And now that the U.S. has set a new standard for launching pre-emptive strikes against our enemies, how can we find fault with Magneto for wanting to do the same against humanity - whom he perceives to be the enemy of all mutants? He has the right idea (save the mutants) but the wrong way of going about it (conquer the humans)

4) Ra's al Ghul. another bad-guy with depth of character. Ra's may be irredemably evil in deed, but he truly does believe that he is working to save the world from itself. Like Magneto, right idea (save the world) wrong way to do it (purge the Earth's population).

5) Darkseid. No complex motives here: he's a power-mad evil despot who wants to conquer as much as possible. He has no delusions about how his genius makes him superior to others, or that he has some inherent right to rule. He wants power - needs power - because that is the only thing that pleases him. As much as I like deep characters, I find Darkside's shallowness curiously refreshing. He is also powerful he could personally take down the 5th Edition Dr. Destroyer in nothing flat if he wanted to - so you gotta love that. Yet he prefers to use slavishly loyal underlings and minions to do all his dirty work, and he has a whole world full of them - a world full of gods no less! Dr. Doom dreams of becoming Darkseid when he grows up.

[Elysea]

Let me second MarkusDark's mention of Xanatos from Gargoyles. You can't go wrong with a genius with style and unlimited resources. Nearly all of the villains from that show were quite memorable, most notably Fox, Demona, Macbeth, and Puck. One of the truly great things about them though is that they changed as the series progressed, giving them personality and character much more three-dimensional than your average Disney control. The series went downhill a bit when they started doing the crazy Avalon stuff but the series is still chock full of quality characters. Oberon's assault on the Xanatos Tower? Priceless.

Similarly, Mr. Freeze as portrayed in the animated Batman series gets my vote. Revenge is my favorite motivating force for any hero or villain, but Mr. Freeze really takes it to the next level. He's great; all he ever wanted was to save his wife's life, but when everything is taken away from him he ends up on a self-destructive quest for vengeance. Sympathetic villains are the greatest.

[Lord Liaden]

Thirdbase, since you mentioned comic books specifically, I'm assuming that you're not really looking for villains from pulp magazines, novels, mythology etc., so I will confine my comments to comic book villains. Although I admit that my opinions are subjective, I'll try to focus on characters that have had a major impact on the comic-buying public consciousness and/or the comic universe that they come from (barring cosmic entities as you requested):

The Joker. Quintessential homicidal psychopath, with a unique and vivid style all his own. He'll make you laugh 'til you scream.

Dr. Doom. The greatest scientific and tactical genius of all comic villains. A complex character with both despicable and noble traits, twisted and tormented by demons mostly of his own making. Undoubtedly Marvel Comics' greatest menace.

Darkseid. I know he's more "cosmic" than some villains, but his abiding interest in Earth makes him a persistent threat to our world. Vast power plus a subtle and patient approach to planning, he can threaten both overtly and covertly.

Lex Luthor. The epitome of the behind-the-scenes mastermind, he'll manipulate and destroy you before you even realize he's involved. Cunning and ruthless, and too cagey for any law-abiding hero to touch him.

Ra's al Ghul. In many ways the opposite number to his nemesis the Batman; brilliant and driven, with an admirable goal to protect the natural world executed through destructive means.

Magneto. A great man twisted by his experiences into a radical "us vs. them" mindset. Highly sympathetic in many ways, with some truly admirable qualities.

The Green Goblin. Spider-Man's greatest enemy, a scientific near-genius with a unique and striking motif. Almost as vicious and deranged as the Joker, only more powerful.

Kobra. His vast network of fanatical worshipper/followers give him the resources to threaten the world again and again.

Loki. Perhaps the most subtle schemer of all, Loki is ambitious but also spreads chaos for the sheer malicious joy of it.

Apocalypse. Vain and arrogant, but his great power, resources and scientific brilliance can't be overestimated.

Eclipso. The literal "dark side" of humanity, with vast powers of destruction and corruption.

Kang the Conqueror. Perhaps the greatest resources of any Marvel villain, obsessed with putting everyone throughout time under his rule. Because he's intervened across many timelines, stopping or even killing one Kang doesn't mean another alternate version won't appear to plague Earth in future.

The Kingpin. Most dangerous true organized crime lord, equally formidable behind the scenes or in a face-to-face dustup.

Mephisto. As close to "the Devil" as Marvel Comics usually gets, Mephisto has little interest in power for its own sake; his speciality is in deception and corruption, destroying the souls of the good and noble so that he can claim them as his toys to torment for eternity.

All I can call to mind right now. I'm interested in seeing who other people nominate.

[McCoy]

The Hulk. Usually presented as a protagonist, he has gone up against enough heros to qualify (IMHO). Raw destructived potential, a force of nature with an anger management problem. Symbolizes how rage unchecked can destroy a person's life and world, also embodies Cold War ambivolence about nuclear weapons (necessary, but what if they got out of control?).

Godzilla. Again, large scale destruction, but in later apperences not totally mindless. Apparently Gaia's enforcer, went into action when the planet was treatened by aliens or human disrespect for the enviroment. "The ecology strikes back!"

Ultron. A computer with it's own agenda and no off switch. Despite the ultra high tech origin, something about the character lends itself to gothic horror, dark and unrelenting. In many ways the least human villian, ruthless and remorseless. Absolutely without redemeing virtues. Embodies the fear of technology gone wild, taking over, destroying something valuable in life.

Apocalypse. The self appointed lifeguard of the gene pool. Loves competition, nature red of tooth and claw. "You ARE the weakest link, goodbye!" Personifies survival of the fittest.

Venom. A composit, Eddie Brock hates Peter Parker, the symbiote hates Spider-man. Pooling their resources, they have all of Spider-man's powers, and then some. Venom is Ahab to Spider-man's White Whale, the embodiment of Revenge at any cost.

[Arthur]

Another vote here for Doctor Doom. Don't have much to add to what was already said. Class, style, power, deviousness, code of honor, a believeable motive from the POV of his own insanity.

Doom was always my favorite Marvel character. Not 'favorite villain' - favorite character, period. Marvel had a short-lived series called Super-villain Team-up that starred Victor Von Doom. I collected them all, of course. This was early Bronze Age stuff, c. 1977.

Doom should have taken over the world long ago. Only his personal code of honor has saved the lives of the FF from his wrath more than once (that and the "script immunity" comment from someone else - nicely put).

[MarkusDark]

I do haveta admit there is a bit of 'style' with Dr. Doom that I like as well. I personally love the way Mauser's look so when I saw he carried one I liked him for that. But I found myself asking, "Why is he carrying a simple handgun when he has all those neat energy blasts, poison darts and other battle abilities in his armor. It seemed 'unintelligent' to carry extra crap around.

Then, I later read a writeup in a comic about Dr. Doom and it turns out he carries the pistol to use against people and idiots who don't deserve him wasting his suit's powers on.

Now, that is Style.

[loraxxx]

since i agree with and would second all those already suggested, i'll add some from various sources not already on the list....

1) frank gorshin as "the riddler'' from the batman 1960's tv series--a second rate comic villan made respectable by inventive writing, and a brilliant performance

gorshin's riddler was a daring madman--his crime-sprees apparently unconnected acts of mayhem--until you put all the pieces together, and learned his true motive....
mr gorshin portayed him with nimble wit, and manic energy--whenever he was on the screen you couldn't help but watch him--he was magnetic....

2) the magnificent ten--from ''giant robo, the animation''
besides having cool costumes and weird and mysterious powers, what made these guys rock was the fact that they didn't fall into the cliched villan behavior of in-fighting and back-stabbing (exept for 'red mask,' and 'komei'--both of whom could be accuratly described as sociopaths)

for once the bad guys were not their own worst enemies--in fact, these guys were best of friends and loyal comrads, united in their belief that they should be the true rulers of the world, under the leadership of 'lord bigfire'

as a result, they are really dangerous--their opposite numbers, 'the celestial nine' are pushed to their limits meerly keeping these guys in check--and they're losing ground against them rapidly....

[Doug McCrae]

The Joker. Combining psychopathic evil with clownish humour and appearance was an absoolute master stroke creating something truly grotesque, truly frightening. The idea has been used a number of times with success, for example, Pennywise the Clown in Stephen King's It.

Dr. Doom. The look (wonderful costume design by Kirby). The castle. The sinister Eastern European background. The pride. The Mauser (old school). Several of the bits added after his original appearance are good too - his mother's soul imprisoned makes us sympathetic, being ruler of Latveria gives him stature. Best of all however is his pursuit of 'forbidden knowledge' such as magic and time travel, making him the perfect nemesis for Reed Richards representing 'good science'. The dangers of such pursuit are written all over his face.

Darkseid. Pure evil in its most potent and powerful form. Greater gravitas and stature than Dr. Doom - he rules a whole planet. And he looks good too (Kirby again). Thanos is just an imitation, and he's a pretty good villain.

Kingpin, as presented in Frank Miller's Daredevil. Represents real organised crime at its most dangerous. Utterly ruthless. Stops at nothing to retain his power and then to expand his empire. He's damn good at it too, that's how he's got to this position. Physically he can be defeated, but finding the evidence to put him behind bars is tremendously difficult, making him a good foe for law abiding heroes like Daredevil (or Superman).
Note: The original strong man Kingpin, who would rob banks by smashing the walls in, was shit.

Doomsday or if you prefer the original, the Hulk. Unlike those previously mentioned, we're not dealing with evil here, but raw destructive fury. Rage! The Id. Each of us feels like Doomsday occasionally and wants to smash everything we see. But sadly we lack the power and must leave so much unsmashed... so, so much...
I also like the fact that (originally anyway) Doomsday's origin was left mysterious.

The Fury. Appeared first in Captain Britain. These have been reprinted in the X-Men Archives and also in a TPB edition which I can't recommend highly enough. Anyway the Fury is a... killer cyborg. Ho, hum, you say, so what? I've seen a hundred killer cyborgs. The Fury wasn't even the first. No, it wasn't the first. But it is by far the greatest. The killer cyborg's killer cyborg. It was created to kill superhumans and it is very good at its job. It killed all of them on its own world plus Captain Britain. No it wasn't a hoax, it wasn't a dream. It really killed him. By shooting him. Once. (Merlin resurrected him from the tiny peices that were left.) There's nothing human about the Fury. It's a combination of the best parts of animal and machine. Its brain combines the logic of a computer with the intuition of a beast. In its 'normal state' it is extremely strong, fast, tough, has a battery of super-senses and a gun-arm that can kill invulnerable superheroes. And it never gives up. Ever. But that's all minor compared to its ability to adapt. It can 'grow' the powers it needs to kill *anything*, to do anything it needs to do, taking what it requires from its environment.

Here's how great the Fury is. One of its last battles was against a man who could control reality. He could control everything. He made the Molecule Man look severely limited. The Fury figured out a way to kill him. And did so. No Lex Luthorish *almost* beating Superman. The Fury is no could've-been, no 'I almost had him that time'. The Fury can and has killed a whole planet's worth of superhumans and a respectable number on Marvel Earth.

The final thing about the Fury I really like. It's not a 'he'. It's not a 'she'. It's an It.

[Catacomb]

Thanos- Darkseid only wishes he were as cool as the Eternal gone mad. Thanos is the embodiment of psychotic behavior...and on a cosmic level at that. Too cool.

Dr. Doom- Perhaps the greatest villian of all time. Has anyone ever actually fought Doom face to face? The answer of course is yes, but if you didn't know that right off then there is the sign of a true uber-villian.

Magneto- I like torn badguys/goodguys when not overdone and Magneto is the blueprint for that angst ridden type. BTW when is he going to patent that helmet of his and sell it on super-villians.com?

Juggernaught- Cain is often looked on by many as 'stupid' and this has gotten lots of heroes clocked. The strongest being on earth is also my personal fav as far as mercs and underlings are concerned.

Bane- I though that Knightfall was one of the most well done series in comic history. Bane beat Bruce in a way that no one ever had...he outsmarted him. Not even Ra's could do that. Also while I'm an Azrael fan I thought that Bruce should have been the one to take out Bane.

Joker- The first and still one of the best. I happen to like his JLA the animated series persona better than his current comic incarnation however, but that's just me.

[Doug McCrae]

I'm gonna add one more as you didn't completely rule him out:

Galactus.

Why? Dude, he *eats* planets.

[loraxxx]

[i]

The final thing about the Fury I really like. It's not a 'he'. It's not a 'she'. It's an It. [/B]

i had forgotten about this character, but i strongly second it's inclusion--and offer Ozymandius, another great villan created by Allen Moore, as well--why? well, because he was too smart for his, and about 2 million other peoples own good....

tragic, truly tragic....

[Ranxerox]

Uhh Thirdbase, by villian do you mean bad guy or bad person? Because no one has mentioned any chicks. Some of them are worth mentioning if bad person is what you meant.

HarleyQuin - A playful and cheerfully amoral character unlike any other in comics or all of fiction to my knowledge.

PoisonIvy- Well, you've got to admit that as a speciecs we have been awfully cruel to the flora of our planet. The arguement for this is even stronger when coming from an incrediably sexy and lethal femme.

Mystique- Intelligent, sexy, ruthless. When she takes on the X-Men she is always out powered but never outclassed.

Morgan LeFay - Such a great villianess that she is found in both the Marvel and DC universes.

[Thirdbase]

I'm equal opportunity, list bad guys, evil women, amorphous blobs of an indeterminate sex, whatever.

I'd like to thank everyone that has posted and those that will.
Many of these I have some idea of who they are, (Go Cartoon Network), some I've just heard of in passing, and others are new to me.

The funny thing is even with all of the votes for The Joker, I still don't like the character.

[Crimson Arrow]

DC

Darkseid - I know he's not from Earth, but he's very frightening. Thanos doesn't really cut it for me. Darkseid has the Omega Beam.

Ra's Al Ghul - Brilliant, master planner, good motives (the means are not so nice, though) and a very attractive and sometimes helpful (to heroes) daughter. Worth mentioning as it adds another dimension often lacking in master villains.

Marvel

Doom! - There is only one. The master villain's Master Villain. See everyone else's posts for why.

The Fury - I have to say this is possibly the scariest villain I have ever seen in a comic. It is basically unstoppable; it will adapt to any threat (except possibly Zeitgeist), has no emotions, no conscience, no mercy. It exists to kill and it does that really rather well.

Two not quites are Magneto and the Joker. Both have moments of brilliance, but each has suffered from confused writing at times.

[Alien Knight]

Yeah, gotta include Doom. If you want a good example of why, pick up the last four issues of the Fantastic Four. It's a great Doom story and quite chilling. I think the writer really pegged Victor and his relationship with Richards.

[Bazza]

Another one for DOOM!!!

Another vote for Thanos. no planet is safe from a guy who worships Mistress Death.

[Klytus]

D'oh!

How could I have forgotten Bane and Harley Quinn??

Two thumbs up for these two.

[Worldmaker]

The greatest supervillains are the ones who get away with it.

[Kid Chaos]

Originally posted by D-Man
First: Pulp Villians

Second: Comic Villians

Lex Luthor comes in at the top of my list. Who else can take on superman and have such consistent results? Whats more, he's the only villian I know to sustain a victory over a long period of time. He's the President of the United States! He's a brilliant scientist and tactitian who has leadership abilities. He's pushed the combined might of the JLA with his brain more than once. What's more: he's bald. Telley Savales never looked so good.

This reminds me of the superman story line where Lex teams up with Supes to stop aliens from taking over the planet. Supes initial reaction and Lex's response were classic.

Superman: "My god this is incredible, how did you discover this?"

Lex: "What do you think I've been doing all these years."

qoutes are not exact but you get the idea. imo that's what makes Lex a truly classic and incredible villian

[starblaze]

Doom is very cool. He has a alot of class and style as well as a code of honor rarely seen in today's villians, although in the latest FF story he has kind of put his honor aside.

Thanos is pretty cool as well, although Darksied has some coolness Thanos has the whole character flaw of not feeling deserving of his goal to please death the keeps him from just destroying everything.

[Agent X]

I have to say Darkseid is much cooler than Thanos. His background, supporting cast, demeanor all impress me much more than Thanos.

[SuperPheemy]

Doom easily topps the list. I remember him coming to New York to save a hero from a fatal disease that not even Reed Richards was able to cure. After saving the stricken hero, Doom was asked why. "Because it was something Richards could not do" was his answer.

[Catacomb]

While Darkseid preceeded Thanos by about three years I think this link will help clear up why I think he is MUCH cooler than Omega boy...http://thanos.crowfans.com/TvsD.html

[Agent X]

Originally posted by Catacomb
While Darkseid preceeded Thanos by about three years I think this link will help clear up why I think he is MUCH cooler than Omega boy...http://thanos.crowfans.com/TvsD.html The guy doesn't seem to know much about the Fourth World and engages in a lot of wishful speculation about how they match up. Darkseid better compares to Zeus or Odin than does Thanos. Thanos is the petulant son of the patriarch of the Eternals lite of Titan. Darkseid is the chief "god" of the evil New Gods born to fill the vacuum left by the death of the Old Gods - which Kirby envisioned as the Graeco-Roman Pantheon (that would be a continuity problem with Wonder Woman and all). I got the distinct impression after reading stories concerning Darkseid and Superman that this was on cat who was tougher than Supes. Darkseid is mighty and is seeking the Anti-Life Equation. Thanos had to search all round the universe for technology that doesn't seem anymore advanced than what Darkseid has at home.

But that's not the real issue. There are a few villains who are defined to be more powerful than either of them. Darkseid is cooler because of his background, his supporting cast, the fact that he's a "grown up" villain who doesn't have to throw fits. Thanos is scary but he comes off a bit juvenile in his behavior at times.

[Catacomb]

The truly scary thing about Thanos though is his intellect. I have an issue of MCP that occurs around the time of the Infinity Gauntlet when Thanos had gone 'good' where he challenged Reed Richards to a game of Chess. They met in some alternate universe and set up a huge board that was moved by thought...Thanos won in 7 moves. That is awesome, and scary. Yes Thanos throws fits, and that is precisely what makes him cool. He has evolved beyond the emotionless Darkseid clone that he once was to become a villian in a class by himself. Subsequently Darkseid has stayed little more than a Doom wannabe, only more powerful physically with no chance in the realm of intellegence. DON'T think that this is an attack on the intellect of Darkseid, it's not, because the guy is a genius, but he's just not on that level. Again I think Darkseid is nifty, and on the cosmic level a threat the likes of which is unparalleled in the DC universe, but he is constrained by rules that Thanos would be more than willing to toss aside if it suited him.

[bwdemon]

The government! Nobody can mess with supers like a Senator with a cause. Plus, you've got all the various conspiracy angles, paranoia over superpowers, a massive military, and other goodies that make any government a solid choice.

[JmOz]

Originally posted by Agent X
The guy doesn't seem to know much about the Fourth World and engages in a lot of wishful speculation about how they match up. Darkseid better compares to Zeus or Odin than does Thanos. Thanos is the petulant son of the patriarch of the Eternals lite of Titan. Darkseid is the chief "god" of the evil New Gods born to fill the vacuum left by the death of the Old Gods - which Kirby envisioned as the Graeco-Roman Pantheon (that would be a continuity problem with Wonder Woman and all). I got the distinct impression after reading stories concerning Darkseid and Superman that this was on cat who was tougher than Supes. Darkseid is mighty and is seeking the Anti-Life Equation. Thanos had to search all round the universe for technology that doesn't seem anymore advanced than what Darkseid has at home.

But that's not the real issue. There are a few villains who are defined to be more powerful than either of them. Darkseid is cooler because of his background, his supporting cast, the fact that he's a "grown up" villain who doesn't have to throw fits. Thanos is scary but he comes off a bit juvenile in his behavior at times.

Funny, everything i heard about the 4th world was that the "Old Gods" were the Norse, not Greek/Roman

[Agent X]

Originally posted by Catacomb
The truly scary thing about Thanos though is his intellect. I have an issue of MCP that occurs around the time of the Infinity Gauntlet when Thanos had gone 'good' where he challenged Reed Richards to a game of Chess. They met in some alternate universe and set up a huge board that was moved by thought...Thanos won in 7 moves. That is awesome, and scary. Yes Thanos throws fits, and that is precisely what makes him cool. He has evolved beyond the emotionless Darkseid clone that he once was to become a villian in a class by himself. Subsequently Darkseid has stayed little more than a Doom wannabe, only more powerful physically with no chance in the realm of intellegence. DON'T think that this is an attack on the intellect of Darkseid, it's not, because the guy is a genius, but he's just not on that level. Again I think Darkseid is nifty, and on the cosmic level a threat the likes of which is unparalleled in the DC universe, but he is constrained by rules that Thanos would be more than willing to toss aside if it suited him. No, Darkseid is portrayed as well beyond genius level of intelligence. I always got the impression that he had other issues he was dealing with, that he was indeed playing a cosmic chess game and the battle portrayed in any given story. Not only is Darkseid arrogant, he is also distracted by the sheer scale that he is operating at. I don't think Darkseid is constrained by rules. I think he knows himself and has personally made the rules that make him so successful.

This is just a matter of taste. If you like Thanos better, that's cool, but if you want to make actual comparisons with Darkseid I'm gonna have to give my 2 cents too.

[Agent X]

Originally posted by JmOz
Funny, everything i heard about the 4th world was that the "Old Gods" were the Norse, not Greek/Roman I may have caught some DC "revisionism" from my source or vice versa. I read this in some sort of narrative of DC history put out by DC. That doesn't mean it was "pure Kirby."

[TheEmerged]

First, let me join in on the Doom Fanboy list :D

Second, let me add 2 names I'm really surprised haven't appeared on the list yet.

First, Ozymandius from Watchmen is in my opinion second only to Doom as the greatest villain of comic history. We're talking about someone who performed the ultimate act of villainy -- world peace.

Second, my good friend the Taskmaster. I understand there's someone calling himself this name right now that's pretty interesting in his own right, but the original forever stands out in my mind. A plain and simple motivation that numerous writers continue to get wrong (he is NOT a mercenary! That would be too much work) and someone who has the good sense to RUN, even after beating Captain America and Iron Man! There were aspects of the miniseries I liked but overall it was "some other guy".

[Nightshade]

Venom was just too nasty. He had a great element to him, too: He truly believes he is the good guy. He's the hero. Spiderman was the villain. That was just great.

I also think that the Master, especially the Roger Delgado Master from Dr. Who was very well done. When you heard that laugh *shiver*

Nightshade

[Catacomb]

Originally posted by Agent X
No, Darkseid is portrayed as well beyond genius level of intelligence. I always got the impression that he had other issues he was dealing with, that he was indeed playing a cosmic chess game and the battle portrayed in any given story. Not only is Darkseid arrogant, he is also distracted by the sheer scale that he is operating at. I don't think Darkseid is constrained by rules. I think he knows himself and has personally made the rules that make him so successful.

This is just a matter of taste. If you like Thanos better, that's cool, but if you want to make actual comparisons with Darkseid I'm gonna have to give my 2 cents too.

You are sooooooo wrong here. Darkseid is not on that intelligence level. Hell, Manhunter has proven to be his intellectual better on more than one occasion. Chalk it up to arrogance if you want, but even Supes has outsmarted him more than once. Darkseid is bad, cool, and whatever...even a genius as I've said, but he is just not on a cosmic intelligence level. Does he have a big ballfield to play in? Yup, but he's not the smartest guy on it. Thanos is the smartest player in his game though. It's not the arrogance of Thanos that causes his losses...it's his insanity.

[ZootSoot]

Tough oe, so many villains are just annoyingly stupid (andf I include Luthor and Doom in that category) and often have as a super power (which many recent heroes also have had) the ability to kick-@ss without any rationale. So here goes:

Joker.
Taskmaster, the guy who has figured out how to use his powers usefully.
Kingpin, he actually looks like he makes at profit at his crimes.
The Ringmaster, though I have trouble buying his Circus of Crime as an efficient criminal organization, this guy really has some brass ones.
The Spot, comes so close to having a unique power set that I have to admire him, horribly underutilized.
Destine of the Brother of Evil Mutants, a female villain who is not only not knockout and a kick-@ss martial artist, but is neither. Huzzah!
The Scorpion, just love his origin and his original look.
The Rhino. They don't get any more straightforward.
J. Jonah Jameson, neither superpowered nor megalomaniacal, he is an ethical man who is Spiderman's real arch-nemesis despite that fact.

[Kevin Scrivner]

Another vote for Fu Manchu, the great-granddaddy of all supervillains! Often imitated, never equalled, never defeated.

Count Fosco, from "The Woman in White." Master spy, hypnotist, experimental chemist. Classy and scary.

Jadis of Charn, the White Witch. So arrogant she's funny and she's too proud to realize it. Resourceful even when robbed of her powers in our dimension.

I'm more into the intimate villains. Sure Thanos wants to blow away your planet but it's nothing personal. Evil on a smaller scale is scarier to me. Sauron covets the Earth but Gollum is the one likely to crawl through your open window on a hot summer night. With that in mind,

Doctor Octopus! A mad scientist with a unique gimmick and the ability to match Spider-Man quip for quip. And he nearly married Aunt May!

The Penuin, from Batman the Animated Series but also the Burgess Meredith version. Sure he's low-powered and a little silly but he's also charming and clever. You never know what he's going to stuff in one of those umbrellas next.

The Hobgoblin. He stole the Green Goblin's schtick but it took us months to find out his identity -- and it kept changing! The greatest identity guessing game since Fantomas. Well, maybe not. But it was still fun.

Oh, and Gollum. I like the CGI version in "Two Towers" but the character begs to be played by Peter Lorre.

Megavolt from "Darkwing Duck." He was upstaged by Negaduck but Megavolt had that gleeful love of crime for its own sake that I find appealing.

[Doug McCrae]

Originally posted by Ranxerox
Uhh Thirdbase, by villian do you mean bad guy or bad person? Because no one has mentioned any chicks. Some of them are worth mentioning if bad person is what you meant. On the whole female characters don't work that well as villains. IMO the only female villains worth mentioning are Catwoman and Elektra, who are both of a type - alternating between opponent and lover for the hero.

Mind you, the Femme Fatale is also good. "She lures men into her web of sin!" But this is a similar sort of idea to the opponent/lover. There's a duality there too but it's evil/seductive.

I don't think female uber-baddies work at all, even in our modern era of ass kicking heroines like Buffy and Tomb Raider. A female Kingpin, Dr. Doom or Darkseid just wouldn't fly.

I'm rather distressed by the Champions 5th Ed move to make some of the uber-villains female, such as Istvatha V'han (although she does have a great name). It may be motivated by the desire to try something new but IMO these are flawed efforts at character design.

[Agent X]

Originally posted by Catacomb
You are sooooooo wrong here. Darkseid is not on that intelligence level. Hell, Manhunter has proven to be his intellectual better on more than one occasion. Chalk it up to arrogance if you want, but even Supes has outsmarted him more than once. Darkseid is bad, cool, and whatever...even a genius as I've said, but he is just not on a cosmic intelligence level. Does he have a big ballfield to play in? Yup, but he's not the smartest guy on it. Thanos is the smartest player in his game though. It's not the arrogance of Thanos that causes his losses...it's his insanity. I'm afraid I don't read much of the late stuff. Your examples won't have much impact on me. I chalk it up to bad writing. Also, I read the later Thanos stuff and thought they were ham-handed.

[Agent X]

Originally posted by Doug McCrae
On the whole I don't think female characters work that well as villains. IMO the only female villains worth mentioning are Catwoman and Elektra, who are both of a type - alternating between opponent and lover for the hero.

The Femme Fatale type is also good. "She lures men into her web of sin!" This is a similar sort of idea to the opponent/lover, I think. There's a duality there too but it's evil/seductive.

I don't think female uber-baddies work at all, even in our modern era of ass kicking heroines like Buffy and Tomb Raider. A female Kingpin, Dr. Doom or Darkseid just wouldn't fly.

I'm rather distressed by the Champions 5th Ed move to make some of the uber-villains female, such as Istvatha V'han (although she does have a great name). You don't think Killer Frost works as a villain!?

[Doug McCrae]

Originally posted by Agent X
You don't think Killer Frost works as a villain!? I like Killer Frost, I think she's a good character. I'd be happy to use an analogue of her in one of my games. But she's too one-dimensional to ever count as one of the all-time great villains.

Perhaps I'm letting my personal liking for the characters cloud my judgement here, but I'd add Raven and Moondragon to the list of best female villains. Though both (especially Raven) are arguably heroes rather than villains. Each of them has Killer Frost's 'cool demeanour' but they have a lot more depth than the ice maiden.

[Agent X]

Originally posted by Doug McCrae
I like Killer Frost, I think she's a good character. I'd be happy to use an analogue of her in one of my games. But she's too one-dimensional to ever count as one of the all-time great villains.

Perhaps I'm letting my personal liking for the characters cloud my judgement here, but I'd add Raven and Moondragon to the list of best female villains. Though both (especially Raven) are arguably heroes rather than villains. Each of them has Killer Frost's 'cool demeanour' but they have a lot more depth than the ice maiden. She may lack depth but Killer Frost makes up for it in style.

[Doug McCrae]

So far, I make the totals (including only those characters that got more than one vote):

Dr. Doom: 14
The Joker: 7
Darkseid: 6
Ras Al-Ghul: 4
Lex Luthor: 3
Fu Manchu: 3
Magneto: 3
The Fury: 3
Thanos: 3
Kingpin: 3
Taskmaster: 2
Ozymandias: 2
The Master (from Dr. Who): 2
Harley Quinn: 2
Bane: 2
Juggernaut: 2
Apocalypse: 2
Venom: 2
The Incredible Hulk: 2
Xanatos (from Gargoyles): 2


I guess Fu Manchu, The Master and Xanatos deserve extra credit for achieving multiple votes on a poll for 'greatest comic book villains' when they are not primarily comic book characters.

[don]

Let's see, my choices for villains:
Of those already selected, Dr. Doom definitely makes it. Magneto is very cool, especially when his relationship with Prof. X is involved in the story. Personally, I'm a big fan of Dr. Octopus, and view him as the main arch-enemy of Spider-Man (as opposed to JJJ, who is without question, Spidey's main nemesis). I mean, really, a fat guy who makes Spidey afraid? That's cool. The Master is an absolute must, although I am equally enamored of Anthony Ainley as I am of Roger Delgado. And Fu Manchu can't be left out, and he did make it into comics, thanks to Shang-Chi.

Now, my own selections: I really like Mordath, the main villain (a lich, as far as I'm concerned) from Sojourn (by Crossgen). Wicked, casually cool, determined, and when his main officer fails to capture the heroine because of Mordath's own failure to size her up as a real threat...the officer offers his life up to Mordath, who pardons him, since it was Mordath's own fault, authorizes the officer to launch a full-scale assault on the heroine, and sums it up with "I'm not in the habit of giving second chances. Don't make me regret it."

Also on my list: Mordru (both as Legion villain, and now JSA heavy-weight bad guy), Deathstroke the Terminator (from Teen Titans) and since some mention of the Big G was brought up, how about his most succesful enemy, King Ghidora (really, gigantic, monstrous force of nature with three heads AND destroys planets).

My offerings, anyway.

Don

[Dog Soldier]

My favorite villain is Iron Mans Sentient Armor. Oddly enough I've never like Doom, he just annoys me.

[TheEmerged]

RE: Mordath. Hmm, I'm a big fan of Crossgen in general and Sojourn in particular -- but I'd have to say I'm a bigger fan of Bohr (the underling in the incident you describe) than Mordath. While that *was* a pretty cool incident, it doesn't really make up for the "I'm dead and I'm complaining about it" stuff the rest of the time.

[McCoy]

So I'm the only one who likes Ultron?

(Speaking of murderous computers, just came back from watching T-3. Great. See it.)

[Lord Liaden]

Originally posted by McCoy
So I'm the only one who likes Ultron?


It was a grievous oversight on my part to leave off Ultron, the most arrogant, vicious, twisted killing machine ever built. His ambition not to rule mankind, but to exterminate and supplant it, is chilling in a way most villains aren't; he truly would stop at nothing. His complex connections to several Avengers make him their greatest enemy. And how many other villains allow us to watch the mightiest Marvel powerhouses throw everything they have at him, while he gets back up without a scratch?

Besides, where would Mechanon be without him? ;)

[Agent X]

Originally posted by Lord Liaden
It was a grievous oversight on my part to leave off Ultron, the most arrogant, vicious, twisted killing machine ever built. His ambition not to rule mankind, but to exterminate and supplant it, is chilling in a way most villains aren't; he truly would stop at nothing. His complex connections to several Avengers make him their greatest enemy. And how many other villains allow us to watch the mightiest Marvel powerhouses throw everything they have at him, while he gets back up without a scratch?

Besides, where would Mechanon be without him? ;) Someone mentioned him early on.

[Crimson Arrow]

I didn't mention the Master, as he's not a comic-book villain. However, as don points out, Fu Manchu made it into comics and I wouldn't mind betting that the Master appeared in Doctor Who comic strips from time to time, so if that's enough, then I'll vote for him too.

Also, Darren considered him good enough to be the villain of the Secret Crisis IIRC.

I think Roger Delgado was more elegant and the fact that he was quite short made for an interesting contrast with Jon Pertwee. He also conveyed self-confidence, intelligence and control, along with a dry sense of humour (eg the bit in "The Sea Devils" where the warden actually believes the Master when he says that "The Clangers" are clearly very intelligent creatures).

However, I think that Anthony Ainley had some poor scripts which required him to do little more than spout nonsense and laugh maniacally, so a direct comparison may be a little unfair.

[lemming]

"Dan, I'm not a Republic serial villian. Do you seriously think I'd explain my masterstroke if there remained the slightest chance of you affecting its outcome? I did it thirty-five minutes ago."

And that's why my vote goes to Ozymandias.

[Agent X]

The whole problem with comparing Ozymandias or anyone else from the Watchmen to the mainstream is that they operate with an entirely different set of assumptions. If you take away the comic book conventions of mainstream comics, what do you think Darkseid or Mordru or Dr. Doom or Ultron would do?

[Black Rose]

Originally posted by Agent X
The whole problem with comparing Ozymandias or anyone else from the Watchmen to the mainstream is that they operate with an entirely different set of assumptions. If you take away the comic book conventions of mainstream comics, what do you think Darkseid or Mordru or Dr. Doom or Ultron would do?

Win.

[Agent X]

Originally posted by Black Rose
Win. Heh, thanks for your support.:)

[Southern Cross]

I generally agree with the list of supervillains.However there are some great villains that nobody has mentioned.Here they are:
(1)The Ultra-Humanite.The first comic-book super-villain,and ranks with the Red Skull in ruthlessness.Also one of the smartest,as he pioneered the old "villain body-snatching " technique after his old crippled body was killed battling the Golden Age Superman.His brain was finally killed by the cursed vigilante Crimson in JSA) after he took control over the Badhnesian Thunderbolt and used it to conquer the world.
(2)The Red Skull.The epitome of the Nazi menace.Still active,he's behind the whole "Red Zone" storyline currently running in Avengers.
(3)The Dread Dormammu.The mightiest occult menace in the Marvel Universe.He ranks up with Darkseid in terms of sheer power and influence.Plus that flaming head of his makes a great visual statement.
(4)Umar The Unrelenting.Contrary to what one poster has said,Umar is just as great a villain as her brother,the Dread Dormammu.The epitome of the Femme Fatale.
(5)Mephista,the daughter of Mephisto.The epitome of the dutiful daughter,she may only have a fraction of his power,but that fraction puts her on Dr. Strange's power level.An interesting mix of naviety and raw sexuality.
(6)Zom.So powerful and destructive,Eternity had to bind him in a mystic amphora,after he was bound and his eyes covered by a magic item.As his power dwarfed Umar's,Dr. Strange was forced to free him to save Earth from Umar.It took The Living Tribunal to re-imprison Zom.
(7)Baron Mordo.Before he developed cancer,he was Dr. Strange's most implacable foe.
(8)Baron Zemo (both of them).The ultimate evil aristocrats.The father killed both Bucky & the original Citizen V,while the son captured Avengers Mansion,and almost conquered the world.
(9)Golgoth from the Empire comic book.This murderous megalomaniac will do anything to control the world,and ,unlike Doom, really wants to do so.
(10)Kaluu.The Ancient One's power-crazed former mentor,he was forced to banish himself to a distant dimension,until the battle between Dormammu and Eternity enabled him to return.Dr. Strange was only able to defeat him by using the Book Of the Vishanti's ultimate defense-the invulnerable book can Reflect all magical attacks back upon the caster!!!!

[Agent X]

Let's not forget Korvac either.

Any two-bit villain with the presence of mind to tap into Galactus' Ship's database deserves to become a cosmic villain that can kill members of the Avengers with a snap of the finger and bring them back again at a whim. Truly mighty with a tragic twist to the story.

Count Nefaria rocks too. This guy was mighty enough to be in on the kill of an X-Man and swat the entire Avengers line-up with the combined and augmented power of the Twister, Power Man I, and the Living Laser. Basically, it was SuperMan on speed vs. the Avengers. If only the power wasn't too much for his body to contain... then Dr. Doom would have had to do something about him.:D

[Argus]

From the Wild Card Books and Comics, I would like to add Puppet Master to the list.
The man was so evil he killed his own unborn child because he saw it as a threat.


A.

[Bazza]

Originally posted by Agent X
Let's not forget Korvac either.

Any two-bit villain with the presence of mind to tap into Galactus' Ship's database deserves to become a cosmic villain that can kill members of the Avengers with a snap of the finger and bring them back again at a whim. Truly mighty with a tragic twist to the story. Having just read the story in TPB form, I feel sympathy for Korvac and that storyline. One of my favourite villians. I saw his entry in the Marvel Handbook way before I read the story, and wasn't disappointed.

[Dog Soldier]

How many supervillains would live if there was no code-vs-killing? It's not that hard to run your own small country and carry out grandiose plots when there's no danger of taking a dirt nap as a result of your behavior.

[Le Schtroumpf]

Philip Nolan Voigt

[Agent X]

Originally posted by Dog Soldier
How many supervillains would live if there was no code-vs-killing? It's not that hard to run your own small country and carry out grandiose plots when there's no danger of taking a dirt nap as a result of your behavior. Very true. I have to think in the real world. Supers who didn't kill people who rampage through cities when they had the chance would be criticized heavily by the populace.

[Lord Mhoram]

I'm coming into this one late so....

Doom.
Magneto (for his deep characterization)
Ultron

Darkseid.
Lex - I prefer the precrisis lex, primarily because of the childhood relationship between lex and clark and the reason he went villian.
Joker

Now a number of villians that have not been mentioned- primarily Legion of Superhero Villians.

The Fatal Five - Especially the mid/late 80's Emerald Queen. Tharok, Validus, Persuader and Mano. Great team.
Mordru - Great villian. Stupid weakness- and has been used to great effect in the current run of the JSA.

And if you want a big hulking monstrosity and don't want to use a big lizard nothing beats the magesty of Chemo. :D

[Agent X]

The Fatal Five are absolutely cool! I can't believe I forgot them.

Let's not forget Computo and Dr. Regulus and the Suneater. What about Time Trapper?

[Lord Mhoram]

Originally posted by Agent X
The Fatal Five are absolutely cool! I can't believe I forgot them.

Let's not forget Computo and Dr. Regulus and the Suneater. What about Time Trapper?

And the Miracle Machine. And Brainy when he went crazy, and how Matter Eater lad proved the points he spent to have the superpower to be able to eat anything were worth it. (If any non legion fans are interested I'll do a summation later).

[Nightshade]

I like Molecule Man, just because he dropped a mountain range on most of the Marvel Heros during the Secret wars to impress Titania.

That was truly great.

Nightshade

[Agent X]

Originally posted by Nightshade
I like Molecule Man, just because he dropped a mountain range on most of the Marvel Heros during the Secret wars to impress Titania.

That was truly great.

Nightshade Molecule Man mighty and mighty wierd.

[Peregrine]

OK. Stepping outside the comics, but supervillain nonetheless...

Dr. Marc DuQuesne, from the Skylark series. Heck, the fourth book of the series was named for him (Skylark DuQuesne), he carried the day when the heroes fell short (against a common foe), and he went out in style, carrying on his ambitions - to rule an entire galaxy, unmolested by the heroes. In other words - he won.

[John515]

Beating someone in 7 moves does not even a little impressive. If you get beat in 7 moves, it's because you simply don't know how to play. If you DO know how to play and you lose in 7 moves, you're just not very sharp. The Richards-Thanos matchup is just bad writing and an astounding lack of knowledge about the subject they're writing about.

[ZootSoot]

Originally posted by McCoy
So I'm the only one who likes Ultron?

(Speaking of murderous computers, just came back from watching T-3. Great. See it.)

Ultron should have been on my list. The only master villain whose ambitions don't seem ludicrous when compared to what he has already achieved; I did despise the Jocasta storylines though, wtf is going on with the writers that they think Ultron is interested in sex (or even has a gender)?

[McCoy]

Originally posted by ZootSoot
Ultron should have been on my list. The only master villain whose ambitions don't seem ludicrous when compared to what he has already achieved; I did despise the Jocasta storylines though, wtf is going on with the writers that they think Ultron is interested in sex (or even has a gender)?

The writers were thinking that Ultron is the personification of the Oedipeal complex, therefore he wants to kill his father (Hank Pym) and marry his mother, or at least his father's wife (Janet van Dyne Pym). (Jocasta was the name of Oedipus mother and wife.) Ultron has also said that while he despises all carbon-based life, he would find it boreing to be the only intelligence on the planet, which is why he tries to create family, the Vision, Jocasta, Alchema. Fortunately for the heros, Hank Pym's social skills have not kept pace with his intelligence, and Ultron ultimately creates a disfunctional family.

[ZootSoot]

Originally posted by McCoy
The writers were thinking that Ultron is the personification of the Oedipeal complex, therefore he wants to kill his father (Hank Pym) and marry his mother, or at least his father's wife (Janet van Dyne Pym). (Jocasta was the name of Oedipus mother and wife.) Ultron has also said that while he despises all carbon-based life, he would find it boreing to be the only intelligence on the planet, which is why he tries to create family, the Vision, Jocasta, Alchema. Fortunately for the heros, Hank Pym's social skills have not kept pace with his intelligence, and Ultron ultimately creates a disfunctional family.

Which is a fairly pointless diversion given that we have all of the necesary dysfunctional patterns within the Avengers themselves (I think dysfunctional is an entirely idiotic term, since it implies there is a "functional" norm). Ultron is at his most boring when the writers go Freudian (mostly because the writers themselves have a limited and lurid grasp of Freud and because many of Freud's central concepts have been largely dismissed). Having Ultron, a machine, become enmeshed in Freud's libidinal motivation complex is a serious waste of thematic potential and character development.

[cjudisch]

My four favorite comic-book villains devide evenly between DC & Marvel (Which is weird, because I've always favored DC over Marvel by a fairly large margin).

DC:
The Joker - Although it depends largely on how he's written. I've always liked the joker portrayed as the psychopath as opposed to the cheeful mayhem-causing joker from the silver age.

Lex Luthor - A gotta second the earlier comments about he post-crisis revamp. Lex Luthor as the ultimate power-player, the Above-the-law reflection of the darker side of human nature and a walking commercial for the idea the "Power Corrupts".

Marvel:
The Red Skull - I mean, the guy was Hitler's personal Do-Boy, what's more evil than that? Perhaps less relevant today than he was in his silver-age career, I always liked that he was sort of the evil reflection of Captain America. Where Cap embodied the spirit of America, the Red Skull embodied the spirit of Nazi Germany (a terrifing prospect for a young kid whose last name means "Of The Jews").

Doctor Doom - Doom is the man. Complicated and, with a background out of a Greek Tradgedy, at times almost sympathetic. If William Shakespeare had written comic books, he would've creatd Doctor Doom.

[Lord Liaden]

Originally posted by cjudisch
Doctor Doom - Doom is the man. Complicated and, with a background out of a Greek Tradgedy, at times almost sympathetic. If William Shakespeare had written comic books, he would've creatd Doctor Doom.

I've often seen Victor von Doom compared to Shakespeare's Richard III: physically deformed and mentally tormented, a master schemer and manipulator, driven by boundless ambition to raise himself from relative obscurity to the heights of power, but ultimately betrayed by his own arrogance and vanity.

[Lord Liaden]

Originally posted by John515
Beating someone in 7 moves does not even a little impressive. If you get beat in 7 moves, it's because you simply don't know how to play. If you DO know how to play and you lose in 7 moves, you're just not very sharp. The Richards-Thanos matchup is just bad writing and an astounding lack of knowledge about the subject they're writing about.

I didn't read that story, but if it was written by Jim Starlin I wouldn't be surprised. Starlin obviously loves Thanos, his creation, and in his most recent stories writes Thanos as the perfect villain, without weakness, unable to be out-thought and incapable of making a mistake. I find that interpretation of the character to be rather boring. :rolleyes:

[Roth]

Originally posted by Catacomb
Bane- I though that Knightfall was one of the most well done series in comic history. Bane beat Bruce in a way that no one ever had...he outsmarted him. Not even Ra's could do that. Also while I'm an Azrael fan I thought that Bruce should have been the one to take out Bane.

I'm sorry I have to put this in... Bane? *lol* Bane was a Thug. He was a thug with great speeches but he was a thug none the less... He didn't beat batman by outwitting him... he beat him by waiting till he was so exausted my 79 year old grandmother could have beat him up with her small purse. Bane was a drug addicted coward who didn't face anyone till he was sure he could put them down easily.

As for the Greatest? Joker, Luthor, Mr Sinister, Harly Quin, Poison Ivy, Darkseid, Dark Phoenix, Deathbird, Doc Ock, Hobgoblin, The Penguin, Mr Freeze, The Hellfire Club, The Red Skull, Baron Strucker, Black Tom Cassidy, the Juggernaut.

I'll edit later for the reasons why.

[Dauntless]

I'll try to post someone who hasn't been mentioned yet...

Bullseye (as Frank Miller wrote him)- The guy took out Elektra with relative ease and he's insane. His powers are cool and he's a tough nut.

The Mandarin- Perhaps Iron Man's greatest foe. While his arrogance often costs him, his rings are devestatingly powerful

Legion- The son of Professor X...nearly changed history by trying to kill Magneto in the past creating "The Age of Apocalypse".

The Darkness- virtually unstoppable in the dark, but just a normal Mafia assassin in the light

The Dark Phoenix- She ate up a star destroying several billion people in that star system

I do have to give a tip of the hat to Korvac. He was a cool tragic villain with cosmic powers.

[Doug McCrae]

Originally posted by Dauntless
The Darkness- virtually unstoppable in the dark, but just a normal Mafia assassin in the lightThat sounds like a cool character. What comics did he/she/it appear in?

[joen00b]

My vote goes to the guy in my Avatar: The Joker. For reasons why, read The Killing Joke Graphic Novel, 'nuff said!

[Dauntless]

Originally posted by Doug McCrae
That sounds like a cool character. What comics did he/she/it appear in?

He was in a Top Cow comic book series. Top Cow was a spin off of one of the Image comics teams. Marc Silvestri was the founder of Top Cow. The Darkness was one of a triumverate of ultra-powerful beings the other two being The Angelus (the opposite of the Darkness being extremely powerful in the light) and another you may have heard of before...The Witchblade.

The Darkness was also cool because although he was a Mafia assassin he had a heart...at least for one person. I stopped reading it about 2-3 years ago, so I'm not sure what's happened to him since, but it seemed like they were trying to "redeem" him. But in the beginning he was as icy as the iceberg that toook out the Titanic. He dropped people left and right along with his little "demon" friends that were made out of darkness itself. And it wasn't just that he offed them...he offed them in very gruesome ways.

[cjudisch]

Originally posted by Dauntless
The Dark Phoenix- She ate up a star destroying several billion people in that star system


I can't believe I forgot Dark Pheonix!

Such a tragic end... (Before Marvel FUBAR'd continuity and brought Jean Grey Back :( )

[megaplayboy]

Kid Miracleman--Shazam as sociopath--wiped out half of London in evil wicked nasty ways in MM#14.

Loki--1st Avengers foe, relies on his wits to bedevil his brother.

The Maestro--the evil hulk from the future.

Ultron
Dr. Doom
Red Skull--no other ex-Nazis need apply.
Kingpin--even Batman would have a hard time bringing him down.

Majin Vegeta--purely obsessed with defeating his rival, Goku.
Brolly--not much personality, but the perfect unstoppable menace--would vaporize Doomsday in seconds.

Catwoman--the one you don't mind watching slink away with her stolen booty:D

[Dauntless]

How about these?

Hal Jordan - the flaked out Green Lantern

Doomsday - the guy that "offed" Supes

The Sentinels - which in one possible future destroy or enslave all of mutantkind.

How about the classic "monsters" of comics like: Fin Fang Foom, Collosus the living It, The Destroyer?

Of the ones that have already been mentioned, I do like Dr. Doom alot. Not only is he a super genius, but he does have a heart (he's always trying to save his mother from damnation) and he also has a code of honor. The same goes for Magneto who is doing what he thinks is best for mutantkind.

Just out of curiousity, does Captain America have an arch-nemesis now that the Red Skull is gone and Hydra is no more (at least as far as I know)?

[Nightmask]

If you mean Superheroic level villians, that will be a tough bill to fill with only those from Earth, which by the way some must of those missed by listing, Loki, Darksied, etc. OK, with that out of the way, here is my top 10. This list may vary based on different criteria. According to the Superfriends (et al) cartoon the THE LEGION OF DOOM are the most sinister of the DC universe. I will remove the ones not from Earth: Bizarro (should count, but I am uess other dimentions are also out) and Brainiac! Marvel is a different egg to crack. Since The Avengers are Marvel's Maightest Heroes, my guess their enemies are the keenest. And Magneto & Jugg!

18. CHEETA
17. BLACK MANTA
16. RIDDLER
15. LEX LUTHOR
14. Count Nefaria
13. SCARECROW
12. TOYMAN
11. Shocker
10. GORILLA GRODD
9. CAPTAIN COLD
8. GIGANTA
7. SOLOMON GRUNDY
6. Sentinel Mark IV
5. Graviton
4. Juggernaut
3. SINESTRO
2. Ultron
1. Magneto

[ZootSoot]

Originally posted by Dauntless
<SNIP>Doomsday - the guy that "offed" Supes<SANIP>

I think both Doom and Luthor are wastes of ink, boring and dull and pointles. But I can't believe anybody could consider that puling, foul, awful, rip-off of a plot device Doomsday as a great villain!

[cjudisch]

Originally posted by ZootSoot
I think both Doom and Luthor are wastes of ink, boring and dull and pointles. But I can't believe anybody could consider that puling, foul, awful, rip-off of a plot device Doomsday as a great villain!

While I'm not positive, I think that's why it's called "Opinion"...

[Klytus]

It may be opinion, but I gotta agree with it: Doomsday is not a villian. Doomsday is an unstaoppable machine of destruction with no goals or motivation other than to destroy everything that moves. That isn't a villian - its a plot device. DC wanted to do Superman Dies story-arc, so they created Doomsday to show that no one else currently existing in the DCU could have done it other than somthing this powerful. The same thing with Bane and Batman - only Bane is actually an interesting character

[Killer Shrike]

Originally posted by Klytus
It may be opinion, but I gotta agree with it: Doomsday is not a villian. Doomsday is an unstaoppable machine of destruction with no goals or motivation other than to destroy everything that moves. That isn't a villian - its a plot device. DC wanted to do Superman Dies story-arc, so they created Doomsday to show that no one else currently existing in the DCU could have done it other than somthing this powerful. The same thing with Bane and Batman - only Bane is actually an interesting character Ditto the much touted Fury from the old Captain Britain storyline. Anything that can do whatever it needs to do is not an interesting character. A villain with no emotion, personality, or goal other than 'kill things' is not very interesting. Characters that are just contrivances to allow a poorly defined plot line are not good villains.

IMO, YMMV

[Killer Shrike]

Well, the big 2 (DC & Marvel) have been covered. How about these:

Toyo Harada (Valiant Universe): A "Prime" Harbinger (massive TK, Telepathy, Mind Control, and the ability to catalyze other latent Harbingers), Japanese businessman. His goals: immortality and the eventual takeover of human society by Harbingers. His methods: by any means necessary, but behind the veil of corporate business. His pawns: The Eggbreakers, a large group of Harbingers under his thumb (so named because if you are going to make an omelette, you have to break a few eggs). His costume: a business suit, with tie. His quirks: Implacable & inscrutible. Never posturing, rarely used his own powers, maintained the charade of an elder Japanese businessman.

Makie Messer (Wild Cards): a troubled and malajusted German youth turned sociopath, and controlled by the aforementioned Puppetmaster to become a weapon of assasination and terror. His powers: Cellular vibration giving him Desolid and a terrifying HKA (vibrate his hands so fast he sheared thru just about anything at the cellular level). His methods: phase thru a wall and hack you to death. His costume: Cheap clothes. His quirks: Mack the Knife.

[Doug McCrae]

Doomsday is a simple villain, yes. But that doesn't make him a bad one.

In a sense Doomsday is the Incredible Hulk. That's why he starts out in a green suit but is revealed to be grey underneath. It seems appropriate that the strongest being in the Marvel Universe and the strongest in the DC universe could each kill the other. The Hulk/Doomsday's ability to get stronger the madder he gets allows the strength champion of the lower-powered MU to be a match for Supes.

Doomsday, like the Hulk represents the Id, albeit one of pure rage. The thing about the Id is - it isn't complex. It's very simple indeed. But that doesn't mean it isn't important.

[Brandi]

I think with characters like Doomsday we're getting into the distinction between a villain and a monster. I mean, to put it this way-- the Xenomorphs of Alien and the T-800 are great monsters, but are they great villains? Discuss. :D

[Doug McCrae]

Whether a character is created to fit a plot or vice-versa is not important. What matters is, once the story starts, does the character act in a plausible way or does it feel like the charcter is just acting in whatever way will further the plot?

I don't think Doomsday could ever be accused of inconsistency. Shilly-shallying, vacillating or toing-and-froing are not in his makeup. At no point in The Death of Superman did I think, "You know up to this point Doomsday has consistently destroyed everything he sees. It seems a little inappropriate that he should now present Lois Lane with some flowers, a box of chocolates and declare his undying love just so's they can get a whole love triangle thing going on. Plus it's a total ripoff of that Titano storyline."

[loraxxx]

Originally posted by Dauntless

Just out of curiousity, does Captain America have an arch-nemesis now that the Red Skull is gone and Hydra is no more (at least as far as I know)?

check out current issues of the avengers--the skull is back, and with, and this time he means it....

the best thing about this current story is that THEY GIVE YOU ALL THE CLUES--!!!

[loraxxx]

Originally posted by ZootSoot
....Having Ultron, a machine, become enmeshed in Freud's libidinal motivation complex is a serious waste of thematic potential and character development.

isn't ultron's brain patterned off of pym's?--it could be he has a less advanced version of the vision's ability to handle emotions, and emotional stress?

if so, then i would think that the way he's been portrayed to this point is not so much a waste of thematic potential, as it is a disagreement between you and his authors about what the character represents....

[loraxxx]

Originally posted by Brandi
I think with characters like Doomsday we're getting into the distinction between a villain and a monster. I mean, to put it this way-- the Xenomorphs of Alien and the T-800 are great monsters, but are they great villains? Discuss. :D

i don't think that just because some antagonists are basically malevolent "forces of nature," prevents them from being "villans." at the very least they are, "villanous devices"--automatons brought to into existence by evil, for evil....

...btw--we don't know enough about how the 'xenos' in "aliens" think to decide if they're vicious animals, or evil beings--they're obviously very dangerous (to us) and for the good of humanity should be left alone--except certain INTERSTELLAR CORPORATIONS (hint: the REAL villans of the piece) won't do that, wil they?

[TheEmerged]

Originally posted by Brandi
I think with characters like Doomsday we're getting into the distinction between a villain and a monster. I mean, to put it this way-- the Xenomorphs of Alien and the T-800 are great monsters, but are they great villains? Discuss. :D

In my opinion? I wouldn't even use the phrase "monsters" -- these are threats. Very great, potentially fatal threats. But a true villain requires a motivation -- and a great one requires that s/he be at least partially sympathetic, IMO.

[Le Schtroumpf]

The Scurge of Burma, the vile Hanoi Xan.

[Nightmask]

Based on the original post, that the villian must fit this criteria:

1. A supervillian. In my opinion, that means 50 pts in one or more characteristic or power.

2. Must be of this Earth. In my opinion that means; interplanetary, extradimensional, artificial beings and et al are out.

3. Must be a comic book based character. Not manga, film, books, et al.

4. I added this one, S/He must be well known!

Yes, I know Lex and others are just smears on Superman's fists.

The following, to this date, should be, in my opinion, altho great villians, removed from the list:

Artificial: T-800, Ultron, Sentinels

Low power: Fu Manchu, HarleyQuin, Herr Doktor Kruger, Joker, Kingpin, Kobra, Lex Luthor, Mr. Freeze, Morgan LeFay, Mystique, PoisonIvy, Ra's al Ghul, Sabertooth, Xanatos

Non-comic: Fantomas, Makie Messer, Majin Vegeta, Master in Dr. Who, Mojo Jojo, Moriarty

Xeno: Darkseid, Dr. Mabuse, Doomsday, Galactus, Godzilla, Kang the Conqueror, Loki, Mephisto, Thanos, Venom

Other: Hellfire Club (team), Hulk (hero), magnificent ten

UNKNOWN: Eclipso, Fury, Killer Frost, Mightybec, Ozymandius, Raz Gul

OFFICIAL LIST
Apocalypse
Bane
Dr. Doom
Green Goblin
Juggernaut
Magneto
Mr. Sinister

And judgeing by the posts, it don't matter, DOCTOR DOOM wins hands down.

[Le Schtroumpf]

Nuts. That eliminates Hanoi Xan.

Fortunatley there was a very Short lived Inspector Gadget comic so I can in full concience pitch Dr. Claw.

[assault]

Oh dear. I've been playing Champions since February 1982. I've just organised my 40th Birthday party...

Anyway, back in the world...

Two DC masterminds:

Vandal Savage
Ultra-Humanite

Both work for me. By the way, if anyone is interested in Doctor Doom, see:
http://www.reading-room.net/

Dr Doom rolled up in Fantastic Four #5. It was a seriously good story. No, really. Juicy time travel plus...

You can actually build the not-so-good doctor on 350 points!

I feel better already.

Alan

[ZootSoot]

Originally posted by loraxxx
isn't ultron's brain patterned off of pym's?--it could be he has a less advanced version of the vision's ability to handle emotions, and emotional stress?

if so, then i would think that the way he's been portrayed to this point is not so much a waste of thematic potential, as it is a disagreement between you and his authors about what the character represents....

Obviously Ultron has an emotional capacity. But, a being dedicated to ending organic life who is capable of reprogramming himself and who is smarter than a cockroach (or a comic book writer) would never be stuck working out puerile sex fantasies of forty-something year old, virgin comics writers/editors. Given everything else, for example, why would he build Jocasta with teats?

[Dauntless]

I kind of saw Doomsdsay as a force of nature...so whether you see that as a villain or not is debateable. Definitely an antagonist and definitely something to overcome.

As for Doom being dull and lame? Well, one is entitled to their opinion, but Doom has a lot character to him rather than being a one-dimensional villain.

If we're talking pure earth-based villains without cosmic powers, I liked Ozymandias alot. Anyone who can catch a bullet and outsmart a man who can create life is pretty damn cool in my book. However is he really a "villain"? Sure, he killed a lot of people, but he also might have saved humanity. It's an interesting deontological question..."does the end justify the means"? As is often said, the road to hell is paved with good intentions

[BlacKlily]

Joker from Batman detective and the darker comic strings.
Green goblin from early spider man when it was The rich mad genuis. The things he put his son thru and Spiderman....nastry, to use and break your own kid for the sake of revenge and power.
After that I like Lex Luther and Kingpen, Master Minds are wonderful. They are able to bring so much to the table, and influnce so many areas of life for the heroes.
Lex Luther and Kingpen did some bravo smear campians that made the heroes life so much more difficult on top of their ability to bring in high powered villians.

[loraxxx]

Originally posted by ZootSoot
Obviously Ultron has an emotional capacity. But, a being dedicated to ending organic life who is capable of reprogramming himself and who is smarter than a cockroach (or a comic book writer) would never be stuck working out puerile sex fantasies of forty-something year old, virgin comics writers/editors. Given everything else, for example, why would he build Jocasta with teats?

why not??--if "puerile sex fantasies" are endemic to the human mind (and let's face it, we're talking about the mind of hank pym, here) then why is it so impossible that ultron might suffer from them--especially if, as i proposed, his brain is a FLAWED COPY of the brain of a man with SERIOUS EMOTIONAL ISSUES....

the substance, i.e. positronic circuits, or whatever, the brain is made from really shouldn't make a difference, since it's hank pym's emotional malfunctions being transferred over to him that are probably at the roots of ultron's core anti-social, psychotic, and highly oedipal behavior....

keep in mind that the whole "ultron thing" is simply a metaphor--a means of exploring themes seen earlier in such works as "frankenstien" and "pinocchio"--don't get bogged down too heavily in the 'scientific' or 'science-fi-ctific' elements of the tale....

think about it this way--1) hank pym has a BUTTLOAD of emotional and pychological issues he is not dealing with very well; 2) hank pym makes a copy of this damaged pysche and puts it in a robot; 3) the copy itself is probably seriously flawed, due to: a) the complexity of what dr pym is attempting to duplicate; b) the limits of science at the time, and; c) that pym is such a mess emotionally that he wouldn't know a stable personality if it bit him tight-white-dupa; which results in 4) the robot developing a personality chock full of emotional and pyschological issues, none of which he is dealing with very well....

SING:....THE CIRCLE OF LIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIFE!!
or
weirdo scientist+makes copy of his (ABBY-NORMAL) brain+puts (ABBY-NORMAL)brain in robot=robot becomes ultron;
OR
messed up parent=messed up kid....

the essential truth of THAT statement is probaly why the character resonates enough with us that he's still being debated nearly 40 years after he was created....

[Captain_Lonesta]

1. Joker-he's killed Robin II, shot the original Batgirl in the spine, and sprayed acid on Catwoman.

2. Green Goblin-he likked Gwen Stacey and used his son for revenge.

3. Onslaught-this amalgam of Prof X and Magneto nearly wiped out most of Marvel's major heroes.

4. Apocalypse-His name says enough.

5.Darkseid-he wants nothing but death and destruction in the universe and searches for a way to cause it.

6. Dr. Doom-he's doen way too much to mention

7. Magneto-he's killed tons of humans and has the entire earth's magnetic field at his disposal.

8. Ra's Al Ghul-Sick psycho who wants to puirge the earth. Batman's most powerful enemy.

9. Lex Luthor-He really does damage to Superman, my least favorite superhero. Someone should permanently shut that boy scout up. Batman rocks!!!

10. Mum-Ra, The Ever Living-In a manga comic he used the Thunder Kittens as sex slaves, and he's made life hell for the Thunderans.

[Wanderer]

Dr. Doom - for the reasons so many have told. Hated when a lousy author made him casually sacrifice his true love to get an advantage. His sense of honor and being true to his loved ones are central to the character.

Magneto -except that I do not deem him a villain. He's heroically trying to prevent what he foresees as a tragic fate for his own people.

Thanos - he has as much class and coolness as Dr. Doom, has saved the universe (and the skin of major heroes, like Warlock and Thor) several times, and managed to raise himself at Supreme Being status three times. Darkseid only wishes in wet dreams to be as good as the Dark Eternal.

Mephisto - elemental evil as its best. Corruption for the sake of corruption

Ultron a reminder of why creating something out of the blueprint of your psyche is no necessaritly a good thing

Loki love of chaos, ambition, and wounded pride at one cool mix

[Supreme Serpent]

2. Green Goblin-he likked Gwen Stacey


I don't remember THAT! Perhaps this should be an NGD discussion... :whistle:

[Vanguard00]

In no particular order (cuz it depends on the book, the author and the plot for which is ranked #1 at any given time):


Joker – The scariest mo-fo out there. “The Killing Joke” cemented my love for this guy.

Sabretooth – The baddest mo-fo out there. Every clash with Wolverine is a rollicking good time. It’s even better when the writer gives him half a brain.

Darkseid – Gotta have one great “dark lord” always in the background. “The Great Darkness Saga” is forever one of my favorites.

Ultron – For being the guy who makes everyone go “Oh, $#!^%” every time he shows up.

Bane – Cuz he beat Batman. “Knightfall” rocked.

Baron Zemo (#4 I think) – For putting together the greatest line-up of “Masters of Evil” ever.

Dr. Doom – The classiest all-around villain out there.

Lex Luthor – A used-car salesmen with a genius IQ…the smarmiest, smartest villain around. And he’s President of the USA!

[Tie] Ra’s al-Ghul / Magneto – For being truly magnificent villains who don’t think they’re villains.

Green Goblin – Cuz he’s just that cool a villain (though I’ll give the ol’ Hobgoblin a “runner up” status)

Kingpin – Cuz he just won’t quit.

Juggernaut - The greatest of the villain “bricks”, and I like him even more now that he’s being given a bit of character.


Honorable mention goes to my favorite villains who kinda suck:

The Wrecking Crew – I just like seeing these guys in a book, even if they do suck most of the time. It always means some good butt-kicking is just around the corner.

Anyone of those guys employed by Justin Hammer: Killer Shrike, Melter, etc.

The whole “Sinister Six” from Marvel’s Ultimate universe. They’re just cool.

[EDIT] Forgot Deathstroke! And Taskmaster! I just love those "super norm" villains...

[assault]

In no particular order...

Obviously silliness is not an impediment to greatness in my view. :)

It's striking how many are Golden Age.

Mr Mxyzptlk.
Gorilla Grodd.
The Wizard (DC).
Solomon Grundy.
Catwoman.
Brainiac.
The Ultra-Humanite.
Lex Luthor.
The Joker.
Darkseid.
Vandal Savage.
Phantom Zone Villains.
The Time Trapper.

Oh, yeah - non-DC villains...

Dr Doom, Magneto, Green Goblin, Namor(!), the Hulk(!).

[freakboy6117]

The ultimate six where really good only problem was that they made the ultimates them selves look like total pansies {the fights ruled you understand} because there is the ultimates the most powerful super powered force on earth and almost all of there incarcerated targets have been stomped into the ground by a scrawny teenager from queens.

The recent ultimate version of sinister was very cool going for that modern look and making him look very scary.

The ultimate version of the Skrulls where also really well redone. Much more complicated, evil and fully realised, instead of the cosmic comic relief they often appeared like in earlier incarnation.

Another favorite from modern iron age comics would have to be THE FOUR from planetary and evil version of the fantastic four played to the hilt really very entertaining especially as there only revealed occasionally but I love the idea of a secret war between the two organizations. Equally planetary played as villains against an altered JLA worked well too.

[Hyper-Man]

too bad this thread's title didn't say "..of all time" or Ambush Bug would win hands down since he's funny and cool and even pestered the Legion of (substitute) Super-Heroes once!

[Kirby]

Dr. Doom. The look (wonderful costume design by Kirby).
Darkseid. Pure evil in its most potent and powerful form. Greater gravitas and stature than Dr. Doom - he rules a whole planet. And he looks good too (Kirby again). Thanos is just an imitation, and he's a pretty good villain.

Hey, thanks. :cool:

Oh, you meant that Kirby. :winkgrin:

[Kirby]

I may have caught some DC "revisionism" from my source or vice versa. I read this in some sort of narrative of DC history put out by DC. That doesn't mean it was "pure Kirby."
Pure Kirby. Gotta love it. :rockon:

Oh, and from Kirby :confused: : The Old Gods were Norse.

[megaplayboy]

On the whole female characters don't work that well as villains. IMO the only female villains worth mentioning are Catwoman and Elektra, who are both of a type - alternating between opponent and lover for the hero.

Mind you, the Femme Fatale is also good. "She lures men into her web of sin!" But this is a similar sort of idea to the opponent/lover. There's a duality there too but it's evil/seductive.

I don't think female uber-baddies work at all, even in our modern era of ass kicking heroines like Buffy and Tomb Raider. A female Kingpin, Dr. Doom or Darkseid just wouldn't fly.

I'm rather distressed by the Champions 5th Ed move to make some of the uber-villains female, such as Istvatha V'han (although she does have a great name). It may be motivated by the desire to try something new but IMO these are flawed efforts at character design.

Viper/Madame Hydra ring a bell? She's ruthless, reasonably competent, and (while she's a hottie) her femaleness has little to do with her villainy.

Cheetah, Queen Bee, Lady Shiva, Hela, the Black Queen, etc....

Glorith was an uber-baddie, worked just fine. Umar, the sister of Dormammu, is another one. Cassandra Nova, the Goblin Queen, etc....

[Kirby]

Ok members of Herodom. I will admit to not being a comic book fanatic, I read a few titles about 15 years ago, but I am interested in who the greatest villains are? I would prefer those grown on earth, as opposed those like Gallactus, but all are welcome. So list you favorites and let me now why.
From Earth?

Juggernaut - Aside from the strongest man and all that when I was a kid, I really liked his loyalty to his buddy (Black Tom?). Also, I loved the concept of his armor and that he couldn't be knocked backwards.

Black Adam - Very nice concept. He's an evil Captain Marvel (who I really wish was called Shazam. That's such a better powerhouse name.) And Captain Marvel rocks too (but he's no villain).

Brimstone - Technically an Earth-created villain. Darkseid created him via a nuclear bomb explosion; how cool is that? The Firestorm writers screwed him over though.

I can't remember if these were in comics or not, but I hope so:

Solomon Grundy - How many villains have good rhymes that go with them? He not only had a tragic side (if memory serves), but he could absorb the Green Lantern power. Awesome!

Gorilla Grodd - Dr. Silverback, eat your heart out. :)

Black Manta - As a kid, I always thought his costume, his voice and his actions were much better than Aquaman's. I don't recall his motivations, but he was at least smart enough to be a criminal in a low-superhero zone. I liked the fact that he did beat Aquaman every now and then (though I don't recall if this was cartoon or comic).

Okay, several have mentioned non-Earth bound, so I'll just add these at the end.

Darkseid - For many of the reasons already mentioned (planet, power, followers, New God status, etc.), but he also has some depth to him, which shows with the right writers. I love his being taunted by the Anti-Life.

Kalibak - Darkseid's villainous son. A great background for this villain and when used properly can wreak total mayhem. An ubervillain whose greatest desire is to be loved by his father? Tragically well done.

Female Furies - Women who kick butt. My favorite is Lashina, especially when she was with the Suicide Squad (Those were my high school ROTC days!).

Thanos - A Darkseid-like clone, but he was still great; at least until the last issue of Infinity Gauntlet. Then they just ruined him.

[Enforcer84]

Villains suck.












:D

[gojiro]

Ten best Marvel Villians:
1. Doctor Doom.
2. The Red Skull.
3. Loki
4. Mephisto
5. Duramumu
6. Nightmare
7. The Kingpin
8. Bullseye.
9. Magneto.
10. The Green Goblin

Honorable Mention; The Bushman, Galactus, The Mole Man, Doctor Octopus,

[gojiro]

What about Villains from non-comic book sources?

Professor Moriarty, Agent Smith and Nuihc from the Destroyer paperback series all come to mind...

[Kirby]

Ten best Marvel Villians:
1. Doctor Doom.
2. The Red Skull.
3. Loki
4. Mephisto
5. Duramumu
6. Nightmare
7. The Kingpin
8. Bullseye.
9. Magneto.
10. The Green Goblin

Honorable Mention; The Bushman, Galactus, The Mole Man, Doctor Octopus,
Who was the villain that wore a green suit, a purple cape and had a glass sphere over where his non-existant head was? Was his name Mystero (or something similar)? And would someone refresh me on his powers?

[Dr. MID-Nite]

Who was the villain that wore a green suit, a purple cape and had a glass sphere over where his non-existant head was? Was his name Mystero (or something similar)? And would someone refresh me on his powers?

Mysterio....Spiderman foe. He had no actual super powers, but relied on SPFX gadgets to create realistic illusions...like making Spiderman think he had been shrunk to only a few inches tall.

Rob

[freakboy6117]

yup mysterio he didnt have any he was a special effcts wizard who use holographics pyrotechnics and other special effecst to produce convincing illusions to thwart his enemies and commit crimes.

[Mike W]

I'm going to campaign for a couple of my favorites who don't necessarily get thought of right of the bat.

1. Scarecrow(Batman, not Marvel's lame wannabe) - what a great concept, fear gas lets him affect lots of people, great support character who can also be a lead villain. a pretty decent hand to hand fighter too, Batman often comments on how underrated Scarecrow is when he fights him.

2. Hobgoblin(Macendale) - another great, cunning villain who makes a good lead villain but can also work well in a supporting role. He really made the costume his own.

3. Crossbones - the guy can fight Capt. America to a standstill and has done so on numerous occasion, but still fights dirty, just for the extra edge.

4. Justin Hammer - I loved this guy in Iron Man. What a great concept. He never gets his hands dirty, never keeps records, just trades favors with villains. "here, I'll fix your suit for you, and in return your first job will be..."

[Mike W]

Who was the villain that wore a green suit, a purple cape and had a glass sphere over where his non-existant head was? Was his name Mystero (or something similar)? And would someone refresh me on his powers?

Yep. Mysterio. Kind of a cool idea for a villain actually. He had his moments.

[Mike W]

1. Joker-he's killed Robin II, shot the original Batgirl in the spine, and sprayed acid on Catwoman.

2. Green Goblin-he likked Gwen Stacey and used his son for revenge.

3. Onslaught-this amalgam of Prof X and Magneto nearly wiped out most of Marvel's major heroes.

4. Apocalypse-His name says enough.

5.Darkseid-he wants nothing but death and destruction in the universe and searches for a way to cause it.

6. Dr. Doom-he's doen way too much to mention

7. Magneto-he's killed tons of humans and has the entire earth's magnetic field at his disposal.

8. Ra's Al Ghul-Sick psycho who wants to puirge the earth. Batman's most powerful enemy.

9. Lex Luthor-He really does damage to Superman, my least favorite superhero. Someone should permanently shut that boy scout up. Batman rocks!!!

10. Mum-Ra, The Ever Living-In a manga comic he used the Thunder Kittens as sex slaves, and he's made life hell for the Thunderans.

I thought Onslaught was overrated. Marvel needed a big powerhouse to take on the world so they could do the whole universe re-make when Liefeld came on board. A bad idea spawned from a bad idea.

I liked Green Goblin, but I think that Norman Osbourne should have stayed dead.

[Mike W]

What about Villains from non-comic book sources?

Professor Moriarty, Agent Smith and Nuihc from the Destroyer paperback series all come to mind...

Villains from non-comic book sources:

Moriarty is a classic.

Richelieu from 3 Musketeers(especially the movie version with Tim Curry, what a delicious performance)

A guy nobody thinks of but who I keep meaning to base a character on is Dr. Giacomo Rappacini from Nathaniel Hawthorne's short story, "Rappacini's Daughter".

[Andrew Cermak]

Bullseye, Deadshot, Taskmaster...I tend to like the badguys on the lower end of the power scale, who nevertheless run with the big boys thanks to skill and style.

My favorite villain, however, is high, high up on the power scale: Thanos. He may have started as an imitation of Darkseid, but he's outgrown him. Thanos actually gets stuff done; Darkseid looks threatening, but then gets kakked by the Atom and Green Arrow or gets the tar beat out of him by Superman. He's all hat and no cattle, at least since Crisis.

[Brandi]

I thought Onslaught was overrated. Marvel needed a big powerhouse to take on the world so they could do the whole universe re-make when Liefeld came on board. A bad idea spawned from a bad idea.


And spawning a new bad idea: Onslaught Reborn. (http://www.newsarama.com/marvelnew/Onslaught/OnslaugthReborn.htm)

[megaplayboy]

Although this pic was amusing.

[Egyptoid]

BRAINIAC and LUTHOR

but: teamed up like they did in Dark Knight Returns.

[FenrisUlf]

First: Pulp Villians

Herr Doktor Kruger (from the G-8 pulps). This is the quintessential evil german scientist. He was the first... and his evil plans were truly creative. One of my favorite was when he defrosted a band of frozen viking berserkers and loosed them on the allies.

Actually, I'd say any and all of the G-8 villains deserve to be remembered among the greats. I am waiting to see who comes up with the idea behind 'Staffel of the Flying Heads', as he will probably claim the title of greatest G-8 villain of all time. Hey, anyone who dares to attack the Allies with gigantic flying heads that shoot bullets out of their eyeballs deserves the title based on sheer nerve.


Fu Manchu. There is no other. Crime Lord. Genius. Master of hypnotism. The guy had class... and he was more interesting than the hero who chased him. After all, he was the first villian to star in his own title.

As VDM put it: there is only one. And if Fu hadn't taken pity on Nayland Smith and Petrie, they would have died halfway through the first book.


Second: Comic Villians

Doctor Doom. He's evil, but he has some redeeming qualities. He's probably smarter than his nemesis, Reed, but has more passion that gets in the way. Even Sue Richards noted he was warmer than her husband when she was forced to interact with him on a personal level. He's got style -- the armor and cape rock. He's got his own country. And here's the real kicker: he defeated the beyonder in Secret Wars No. 10. If it weren't for script immunity he'd have wasted the FF a long time ago.

Sabertooth. I just like the guy. He's nasty. He goes head to head with wolverine. Some of the best comic fights I've seen are between them... like when he came for Betsy at the Xavier Mansion.

Raz Gul -- unlike the Joker who has become a homicidal maniac over the years Raz Gul has style, major plans, and a hot daughter who loves the Bat. It makes sense when he comes back because its always a major story arc. He's not another serial asylum escape. What's more... he's got some cool toys. Anybody with massive zeppelins rocks in my book. I sum it up: derigible.

I like all three. Doc Doom is simply untouchable in his better moments. Ras al Ghul wins as the all-time most dangerous Batfoe; I think if the Joker had ever tried anything with him, Bruce would have received the clown's head in a gift box with a note reading "This one's a freebie."

And Sabertooth used to be cool when he first took on Wolvy and the X-Men at the time of the Mutant Massacre. But then someone decided to try and make him a hero. What followed was an abomination. Just because a villain is popular, doesn't mean he'll be equally cool as a hero.

Whoever mentioned Xanatos and the Gargoyles villains: :thumbup: Dang, but Xanatos was the bomb. Not least because even though everyone knew he was completely untrustworthy, he still got the heroes to help him whever he wanted. And he possessed just enough decency that you could almost like him. Even if he once turned his fiancee into a giant snarling wolf-beast. But then, Fox always was a bit of a b**** anyway; though I thinkit must be embarassing to have to bail your wife out of the dog pound after a night on the town.

Trying to think of other comics villains. Hmm, well, Darkseid wins some points as the incarnate Satan of the DC Universe. His homeworld of Apokolips also never fails to scare the c*** out of me. Deathstroke is also great; how many guys have ever taken the League down singlehanded?

I like the 'old' JSA villains like Black Barax, Vandal Savage, and Johnny Sorrow.

Better stop here or I'll be at it all day.

[J. Chamberlin]

Have any of the members of Cobra been mentioned yet? G.I. Joe has always had a place in my heart.

Sir Pentor, Destro, Cobra Commander, that hot chicky with the black hair, and especially Storm Shadow (the original badass ninja-in-white). For their logo alone they oughta be in the Honourable Mention catagory.

j

[CrosshairCollie]

Have any of the members of Cobra been mentioned yet? G.I. Joe has always had a place in my heart.

Sir Pentor, Destro, Cobra Commander, that hot chicky with the black hair, and especially Storm Shadow (the original badass ninja-in-white). For their logo alone they oughta be in the Honourable Mention catagory.

j

It was 'Serpentor' (as in Serpent, yes), and the hottie with the black hair and thick Russian accent was The Baroness.

I suppose, since we're on this line of thinking (and they were in a comic book!), I'm going to throw Starscream into the ring. Using his Comic Book appearances in Transformers as source material ... that guy was all that and a bag of microchips in the later issues.

Okay, he got chumped by Omega Supreme, but so did Thundercracker, Skywarp, Rumble, Frenzy, and Buzzsaw, in the same outing.

After he got put back together, though, he arranged a civil war between Ratbat's Decepticons and Scorponok's set, then got both of THEM to attack an Autobot rescue force, sent up to the Arctic with human bait, while HE stole Scorponok's spacecraft to go harness an ancient Cybertronian power source ... its power shone on him for all of five seconds, and he got powerful enough to take on legions of Transformers solo, and was only defeated by his own greed and lust for power.

Later on, he started *another* Decepticon Civil War, teamed up with Shockwave and a few miscellaneous deserters. Less effective than the first time, of course, but still, the fact that he was scheming and plotting to stab Shockwave (the leader of the rebellion) in the back the whole time is a nice touch. The man just never gives up when there's power to be got!

And in the G2 comics, Starscream got his hands on the Autobot Matrix of Leadership, and used it to merge with a planet-sized superweapon. The irony, of course, being that Starscream's close contact with the Matrix meant that he started turning good! :D

(And, of course, while not in the comics, per se, his Transformers: The Movie coup of Megatron. "Starscream, wait ... I still function!" "Wanna bet?")

[TheQuestionMan]

My Top 10 Favourite Supervillains are:
01. Doctor Doom - Style and a mix of Magic and Techology
02. Ra's al Ghul - Style and MO
03. Batroc the Leaper - Style and MO
04. Lady Shiva - Reactions of others to her
05. Taskmaster - Style and update. His Mutant Power is great, but is still a TPO
06. Fixer/Techno - Coolest concept and expensive to emulate
07. Injustice Society members - A really well writen story line
08. Baron Zemo/Citizen V - Gotta give him credit for perseverence
09. Wrecking Crew - Just a nice bunch of thugs to beat on. Not easy either.
10. Lady Deathstrike - Cool concept (I liked the Film concept better)


Category:Supervillains by adversary
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Supervillains_by_adversary

Cheers

QM

[gojiro]

What about real life supervillains?

Some of the lobbyists in Washington may qualify because:

1. They operate secretively.
2. They are crooks.
3. They are powerful.
4. Their goals have potential ramifications that trickle to a global level.

[gojiro]

Best Supervillains.

1. Professor James Moriarty: The first real supervillain. He was the mentor to Sherlock Holmes.
2. The Joker: He has hubris. His real identity has never been divulged.
3. General Zod: He is Superman's literal opposire number.
4.

[transmetahuman]

My gonads would like to vote for:

1) Seamus (http://www.imdb.com/gallery/ss/0305357/Ss/0305357/CAFT-037.jpg?path=pgallery&path_key=Theroux,%20Justin) O'Grady (http://www.imdb.com/gallery/ss/0305357/CAFT-357.jpg?path=pgallery&path_key=Theroux,%20Justin&seq=2) from Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle, and
2) Lucy Diamond (http://www.afterellen.com/Movies/debs/profiles/lucy.html) from D.E.B.S.

My gonads have pretty juvenile taste in movies, yes.

The rest of me has a taste for semi-sympathetic villains, with comprehensible motives and a lack of over-the-top mindless visciousness, but they're mostly covered up-thread pretty well already. I gotta mention one of my all-time favorites, though:

*) The Mayor, from Buffy the Vampire Slayer (tv series)

Okay, none of these are from comics, but they all definitely qualify as super-villains.

[caris]

Terra, I of course mean the original. The one who conived her way into the Titans, won the heart of Garfield Logan and than betrayed them all to Deathstroke and Hive.

Batman's rogues gallery is a special thing. I don't think any group of villains work as well as Joker, Riddler, Penguin, Catwoman, Two Face and Scarecrow to high light the hero by contrasting against some aspect of him. It is part of why I find stories featuring them against some one other than Batman often less than satisfying.

Dr. Doom, no one does pretention better.

The Enchantress, defenitely Loki light, but she just has such a better sense of style.

[CrosshairCollie]

Hmm. I don't think he's been mentioned, but I think I'll give some props to the Kingpin. Anybody who's had his fat fingers in THAT many pies for as long as he did without getting caught knows his stuff.

[Twilight]

I've always had a soft spot for Sinestro. Sure he's not exactly the Green Lantern's opposite number now, since the whole yellow weakness for the power rings has been nerfed somewhat but he's still a fun villain. Best part is he can work in silver, bronze or iron ages without trouble. Am I the only person liking the concept of a Sinestro Corps?

[Enforcer84]

Black Adam

[Kirby]

Black Adam
Hooya! :thumbup: Shazam! Shu, Heru, Amon, Zehuti, Aton, and Mehen

I also like Darkseid and Kalibak.

[FenrisUlf]

Black Adam

Dang. I've been reading the current run on JSA since it came out (almost), and I forgot him.

But an outstandingly good choice.

[Log-Man]

I can't seem to think of any super villains I like...

:whistle:

[austenandrews]

Dr. Doom
Luthor
Joker
Magneto

Here endeth the list.

[GoldenAge]

I can't believe the Fawcett baddies haven't received any love. :confused:

Dr. Sivanna
SABBAC (Especially the new SABBAC II)
Black Adam

There are also some Awesome Golden Age baddies...

Vandall Savage
Per Degaton
The Shade
Solomon Grundy
Of course, the Joker

It's hard to nail down a single favorite. I love to see different villains for different reasons. It's easier to pic my favorites form different categories...

Evil Deity: Darkseid (Special award of merit to Loki, SABBAC II and Eclipso)
Megalomaniac: Dr. Doom (But I'll always love Dr. Sivanna and Red Skull)
Total Psychopath: The Joker (Millar's Bullseye ranks high here)
Noble Villain: Black Adam (Magneto and Count Nafaria could fit in here)
Big Bad Brick: Juggernaut (Gotta love Solomon Grundy though)
Just Plain Bad: The Absorbing Man (Recent renditions of the Wrecking Crew are fun too)

Any more archetypes???

For me, this list changes daily!!! :D

[Weldun]

Sadly, my favorite villain was one that went up against Hal Jordan/Green Lantern, and yet I cannot remember his name, just his schtick. He wore yellow from head to toe, and carried around an industrial paint sprayer filled with yellow paint. For an entire issue, he tormented his adversary, until GL just landed next to him, and socked him one right in the jaw. Which was the villain's point entirely.

[CrosshairCollie]

Sadly, my favorite villain was one that went up against Hal Jordan/Green Lantern, and yet I cannot remember his name, just his schtick. He wore yellow from head to toe, and carried around an industrial paint sprayer filled with yellow paint. For an entire issue, he tormented his adversary, until GL just landed next to him, and socked him one right in the jaw. Which was the villain's point entirely.

That'd be Goldface.

[Weldun]

"For we are Geek, hear us ROFL"
Thank you, kindly.

[Log-Man]

...It's hard to nail down a single favorite. I love to see different villains for different reasons. It's easier to pic my favorites form different categories...

Evil Deity: Darkseid (Special award of merit to Loki, SABBAC II and Eclipso)
Megalomaniac: Dr. Doom (But I'll always love Dr. Sivanna and Red Skull)
Total Psychopath: The Joker (Millar's Bullseye ranks high here)
Noble Villain: Black Adam (Magneto and Count Nafaria could fit in here)
Big Bad Brick: Juggernaut (Gotta love Solomon Grundy though)
Just Plain Bad: The Absorbing Man (Recent renditions of the Wrecking Crew are fun too)

Any more archetypes???

For me, this list changes daily!!! :D
I had a list of villainous archetypes written up based upon theiir relationship to their foremost opponent. I can't remember them all, I'll have to search for it another time. They were, for example, the Twisted Mirror, The Polar Opposition, The Challenge, The Threat, etc.

[Bismark]

Favourites: Dr Doom; Darkseid; Dormammu

Rarely appearing but I like them anyway: Shuma-Gorath (Elder God - 'nuff said), Zom

Organizations: AIM (gotta love those bucketheads! - and the wackiness that was the Cosmic Cube)

Comic Relief: U-Foes (HOW many dice of Unluck? - or stupidity); Bad Guy (from 'Megaton Man')

Sabretooth? Really? this guy got toasted by Iron Fist - in the dark! (it was, I believe, his first appearance - in the much missed [by me anyway] 'Power Man and Iron Fist')

[Lemurion]

Have to go with the Joker. He may not have the "super" but he sure has the "Villain." R'as is another definite keeper. I also have a soft spot for Deathstroke (anyone who can make Arsenal think he's Batman for a good year has definite style.) I'm not much on Luthor, even though he did get elected President.

Doom and Magneto are also very good, and I really like what Ed Brubaker's doing with the Red Skull these days.

Going Cosmic, I like Darkseid, always have.

[Dragonblade]

Doctor Doom. He's evil, but he has some redeeming qualities. He's probably smarter than his nemesis, Reed, but has more passion that gets in the way. Even Sue Richards noted he was warmer than her husband when she was forced to interact with him on a personal level. He's got style -- the armor and cape rock. He's got his own country. And here's the real kicker: he defeated the beyonder in Secret Wars No. 10. If it weren't for script immunity he'd have wasted the FF a long time ago.

Actually Doom has utterly defeated the FF4 before. But then he let them go after he realized that he enjoyed the thrill of defeating them and seeing them humbled before him more than he wanted to actually conquer the world. :)

[Lord Liaden]

As long as we're bringing up personal favorite villains, I'll put in a word for my own, DC's Brother Blood. He came across as a master schemer on par with Doctor Doom, but with more patience and less arrogance; he was quite willing to accept a short-term setback if it advanced his long-term goals. And he was the first villain for a mainstream comic series to use a cult as his major schtick. I always found his approach to world conquest to be more practical and sustainable than Doom's - rather than compel service through force and fear, Blood sought to convert people to his worship so that they would be willing servants.

His semitragic origin, sinister costume, and that resonant name all just worked for me. I'm only sorry that he fell prey to DC's nasty habit of killing, retiring or in some other way neutering characters with the potential to become great master villains. Their stable of those is rather thin, particularly in comparison to Marvel's.

[DarkClaw]

1st: Dr. Destroyer: He just happens to be one of those guys that could ruin your day.

2nd: Omega The Lord of the Terminus (Mutants & Masterminds): Pretty creepy looking and full of power.

[Amber Nytstar]

My favourites, in no particular order
1)Kingpin: Have to agree with Crosshair Collie on this one.
2)Shiwan Khan: (I'll get back to you with a reason)
3)Captain Black / the Mysterons (OCS): Really great cryptic threats, mysterious atmosphere, and 'treacherous' agents. There's even been a few times when they've caried out their threat. (Okay, I'll admit one half of this pair is not terrestrial, but you can't really take Black without his masters.)
4)Brainiac: Again non-terrestrial, but did have some fairly nasty schemes that I liked.
5)Alva senior: (Again,I'll get back to you)
6)Vlad Masters/Plasmius: More experienced than Phantom, the hero he deals with, has a nasty obsession with the boy's mother and his fingers in as many pies as the Kingpin.

[Funksaw]

1) Magneto. (Marvel, X-Men) Ever have one of those days where you were so cynical about humanity's infinite capacity for self-destruction? Magneto's got a lifetime full of 'em, and a tattoo to prove it. The personification of "Never again." The villian of the X-men series only because of his tactics - in the end, he may even be right.

2) Darkseid. (DC, Superman/New Gods) He's Doctor Doom on a universal scale.

3) Captain Cold: (DC, Flash)This is the supervillian you can be friends with.

4) The Four: (Wildstorm, Planetary) Secret Masters that could kill off half the US before lunch and get away with it. Pure unadulterated evil all the scarier by what you don't see - and the "life imitating art" that has occured as the series continues.

5) Rasputin: (Image, Hellboy) An Elder God's Best Friend.

[David Johnston]

1) Magneto. (Marvel, X-Men) Ever have one of those days where you were so cynical about humanity's infinite capacity for self-destruction? Magneto's got a lifetime full of 'em, and a tattoo to prove it. The personification of "Never again." .

"Unless I'm the one doing it."

[Kirby]

Well, since we're reviving this thread, I might as well as one I hadn't before:

Foxbat!

Why? Well, he's a villain, and he's super fun to have show up. :wink: He's just great!

[Arkham]

Not necessarily the greatest at anything, but the recent portrayals in the Outsiders have made me a definate fan...

Monsieur Mallah and the Brain.
Twisted, sympathetic, sociopathic, and poetic.

[freakboy6117]

don't forget very much in love

[daeudi_454]

Okay- Based off the Top Ten votes in this thread... a Poll
http://www.herogames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=48121

[st barbara]

I agree with whoever suggested Blackie Duquesne. Utterly amoral but not "evil" in the sense that he never did anything unless there was something in it for HIM; and a genius to boot ! Another"old time" suggestion is H Rider Haggard's "She Who Must Be Obeyed"; an immortal woman who was quite happy to conquer the world on a whim ! Also Shiwan Khan, arch enemy of "The Shadow" and potential world conqueror . Some of Verne's scientiists could be considered villains too , such as Nemo from "20,000 Leagues Under The Sea" and Robur from "Master Of The World".

[Kirby]

Utterly amoral but not "evil" in the sense that he never did anything unless there was something in it for HIM....
:nonp: :confused:
Would you explain that sentence a bit more in depth?

[Lemurion]

:nonp: :confused:
Would you explain that sentence a bit more in depth?

Dr. Marc C. "Blackie" DuQuesne was the "villain" or perhaps more properly the Anti-Hero of EE "Doc" Smith's Skylark series. In the end, he saved the universe from a true evil because the "hero" of the series did not have the stomach to do what was necessary. DuQuesne was never capriciously cruel, but he was ruthless and completely amoral.

It can also be argued that he was the best character Smith created in his entire career.

[st barbara]

Dr. Marc C. "Blackie" DuQuesne was the "villain" or perhaps more properly the Anti-Hero of EE "Doc" Smith's Skylark series. In the end, he saved the universe from a true evil because the "hero" of the series did not have the stomach to do what was necessary. DuQuesne was never capriciously cruel, but he was ruthless and completely amoral.

It can also be argued that he was the best character Smith created in his entire career. Exactly what I was going to say. In the early part of the saga he makes a number of attempts to destroy the heros because he sees them as a threat to his plans but, in the final battle he alerts the heros to the greater threat to their universe and helps them to defeat it; displaying utter ruthlessness in the process. As I said he is utterly amoral and self interested, but not necessarily "evil" (unless there is some reason for him to be ). I have often wanted some other writer (or writers) to continur the saga of Blackie Duquesne in the same way that other writers have done "Lensman" stories. I'm not sure WHO would be the person to do it justice however.

[GhostDancer]

Obviously Ultron has an emotional capacity. But, a being dedicated to ending organic life who is capable of reprogramming himself and who is smarter than a cockroach (or a comic book writer) would never be stuck working out puerile sex fantasies of forty-something year old, virgin comics writers/editors. Given everything else, for example, why would he build Jocasta with teats?

Cuz he likes the movie Metropolis?

[steamteck]

I'm afraid I don't read much of the late stuff. Your examples won't have much impact on me. I chalk it up to bad writing. Also, I read the later Thanos stuff and thought they were ham-handed.

I prefer Darkseid but am a huge early Thanos fan also. Later Thanos became too much of Mary sue with an area effect competance drain on all the other characters for me. Both characters have had there share of bad writing unfortuanately lots of Thanos bad times were IMO under Starlin himself. They are both great more than epic villains with almost limitless story potentual if handled well. That being said Darkseid is my favorite comic villain of all time but early Thanos is 2nd.

[Orion]

Most mastermind types I dislike, because they have to act dumb in order to let the heroes win. Goofy and crazy villains I never like - characters like the Joker and Foxbat pretty much guarantee I won't like the storyline. All in all, there are few villains I really liked.

Magneto is probably my favorite comic villain, but it depends on the incarnation and story.
Loki is always a good one, although often not handled well.
Deadshot (DC) is probably my favorite regular villain, and all because of the Suicide Squad book. When acting as a villain of the month in some other book, he was useless.
Hobgoblin was great, and much better than the Green Goblin in the stories I read.

On the assumption that there was a Buffy comic, and that Spike appeared in it at least once, I'll add him to the list. I loved that character as a villain.

[Greybook PLayer]

Angelus??? for complete b*st*rdness!!

[Andrew_A]

Kid Marvelman, the only truly great Iron Age villain.

Mojo Jojo, for over the top cartoon villainy.

Cobra Commander. Just because.

Prometheus, before James Robinson turned him into a depraved villain-Sue.

Professor Zoom for having the coolest supervillain costume of all time.

Auric Goldfinger purely for this exchange:

Bond: Do you expect me to talk, Goldfinger?
Auric: No Mr. Bond. I expect you to die.

Dr. Evil, for being even better than Goldfinger.

Finally, General Zod (movie version). If Superman is supposed to be some kind of angel, Zod is Lucifer.

[steriaca]

I notice no manga charaters (at least what I spoted in this thread), so I should add to that mistake.

Queen Berly and Queen Metalica (from Sailor Moon): A vinidate, jellous queen made imortal by a pact with what is basicly a liveing sunspot. Corupts four good men to use as her pawns, and destroys life on the Moon because the Earth Prince Endymon loves Princess Seriity of the Moon more than her.

Pegagess J. Crawford/Maximilian Pegasess: Acualy a playful man with a wickid sence of humor and a plan to use science and magic to reserect his dead wife. Kills "Bandit" Keith Howard in the manga by forceing him to shoot himself in the head with his powers. Almost took the puzzel from Yami Yugi. Lost his life (and magical artificial eye) via Yami Bakura. Witty, can be nasty, and funny. And almost got away with it also.

Yami Bakura (aka Bakura, King of Thieves): An evil spirit traped in the Milimumin Ring, able to take control of his 'host'. Has long plots invloving role playing games. Powerful magic is at his comand, othoe limited to whatever game he is playing. To make maters worse for Yugi and friends, when Yami Bakura is not in control, Bakura is sweet and nice, makeing it worce when he turns on them.

[FrankL]

Not from a comic book, but the creepiest villain I can think of is Mr. Teatime (pronounced Teh-ah-time-eh) from Hogfather. He is a complete sociopath, who kills without provocation or warning, but only when he feels necessary. He has devised ways to kill (pardon me, "inhume") the Tooth Fairy, the Hogfather, the Soul Cake Duck, and even Death. His mind is like a broken mirror (sharp, dazzling, but broken beyond repair).

He was an orphan, taken in by the Guild of Assassins (maybe they should have wondered a little harder about the mysterious death of his parents). He was known for high marks in all classes and excessive cruelty on the job, at times killing all members of a household and their pets when the contract was only for one member. He did check the breath with a mirror but as the head was three feet from the body, this was probably unnecessary. However, he was never called on the carpet for cruelty but for "lacking elegance" in the job.

He had a glass eye. Rumor (though with evidence to back it up) said he had ensorceled it as a scrying crystal. This goes quite a way to explaining his abilities such as being able to stop his knife on the skin but after penetrating all layers of clothing, stopping a blade while touching the target's eye, mid air flips, uncanny dodges, and sneak attacks.

[steriaca]

Humm...more manga...

1) Dio Brando: Prehaps one of the worlds most powerful vampiers, and bain of the Jostar/Kujo famaly from the first and third storyline of Jojo's Bizzare Adventure. Just his existance is enougth to slowly kill Holly Kujo.

2) Marick Istar/Yammi Marick: If there is a true 'sick bastard' in Yu-Gi-Oh!, it is him. I don't see why Yami Yugi dosen't simply mind crush him...

[David Blue]

Dracula, long-running star of his own great series Tomb of Dracula. He had an unlife full of incident and interest, an atrocious but plausible morality, and withering arrogance well supported by his consistent winning record and the fact that even if he was "killed" he was more than likely to be revived sooner or later and he knew it. He was a cloud of gloom that withered and destroyed everything he touched, and from time to time he would give people pointers on how to be more like him. (But of course they never measured up. Which meant that whatever happened to them next was their fault, really.)

Classic Drac moment: a young girl was wandering out, upset with her parents. Did Drac bite the child? You underestimate his nobility! He got her invitation to remedy the matter, and he slaughtered the whole family. And then, despite this vast act of generosity on his part, the wretched, ungrateful child acted distressed! Already sated to the full, the Lord of Vampires flew off in a huff. (Leaving the girl presumably to deal with the guilt of having wished Dracula on her parents.)

The situation of the "Drac Pack", the bit-player heroes in the villain's story was utterly grim, as they were ground down one by one, always facing killer villains, never with any real hope at the end of the tunnel, and always with their loved ones marked for kidnapping, hostage games and death or even undeath followed by the need for the heroes to dispose of them. Probably the guy in the worst situation was an actual descendant of Dracula. That didn't mean Drac had any restraint in dealing with him, rather Dracula was extra-hostile out of contempt that any descendant of his could be a wimpy human "hero".