Villains are one of the most fascinating things about modern comics. They challenge what heroes are supposed to stand for and can provide an interesting counterpoint to their ideals. Some may be sympathetic while others are the ones that you just love to hate. It has been a huge year for comics in terms of crossover events. With all the new story arcs running, many villains have received major updates and improvements. In light of this, I bring you what I consider to be the best villains currently featured in comics.
This guy almost didn't make list, but after Final Crisis: Rogues Revenge how could he be denied? Sure the parka and the glasses are goofy, but how tough do you have to be to go around in a getup like that and take it seriously? The character is about more than just cold gimmicks, underneath the flamboyant outfit lies one of the few redeemable villains in existence. Cold's morality is what sets him apart, he doesn't act out of a need to do evil. He is simply a guy from the streets who is desperate for cash. He will kill if he has to, but he's not going to go out of his way to hurt anyone.
Before Geoff Johns started writing him, Brainiac, like many of Superman's rogues, was considered a joke. The character was so mired in a convoluted and unnecessary history that many writers were hesitant to use the character, and when he was used the stories were lackluster at best. With his origin completely revamped, the character has been bumped up from footnote to galactic level threat. He is now essentially a sentient Wikipedia, constantly gathering information and destroying biological organisms so that new information cannot be created. The horror of that idea speaks for itself.
The Red skull has been quite busy lately. Orchestrating the assassination of Captain America while also planning to destroy the American economy, makes for quite a resume. The great thing about the Skull is that he is unquestionably evil, a member of the Nazi party who actually served under Hitler. Thankfully things get progressively worse for him as his story continues, but watching how deviously cunning his plans are makes the reader realize why the Nazis are still considered the greatest threat in human history.
For years Darkseid has been considered one of the most formidable villains ever created. He has all the power of a mythical god and can go toe to toe with any of DC's heavy hitters. Final Crisis, DC's 2008 crossover event, is centered around the idea that Darkseid's victory will mean the final triumph of evil over good, so right now he's one bad dude. On top of that, he has a mathematical equation that proves all life is worthless and that he is the rightful master of the universe.
Old Norman has had a long a distinguished career in super villainy as the Green Goblin. But how does someone top killing Spider-Man's true love by tossing her off a bridge? How about by worming their way into a high position of the U.S. government and taking over a UN sanctioned team of super villains? As he gains more and more political power he is evolving into more than just a Spider-Man villain, he's becoming a threat to the rest of the marvel universe. The fact he is as psychotic as ever is also a bit unsettling. He is essentially becoming an evil Nick Fury. What's worse is that beneath the aura of Machiavellian confidence it is still easy to see the green and purple clad maniac lurking just beneath the surface.
In the Annihilation crossover event the Skrulls were almost completely devastated, but it these treacherous aliens don't die easily. They have returned with vengeance in Marvel's Secret Invasion, and by infiltrating almost every level of the world's infrastructure it appears they've already won, and if their story is to be believed then they have been winning for years. They have been inside the world's major governments and manipulating them for an unknown period of time. How man the marvel heroes fight a battle that they've already lost? How can they trust anyone when these crafty critters can look like anyone on the planet? The answers in the actual series are few and far between, and so far it looks like these tricksters may be successful in their mission to dominate earth.
Alien threats are also present in Image's Invincible ongoing series. These humanoids aren't quite as subtle as the Skrulls though, they're far more brutal. They're a species that is the equivalent of an evil race of Kryptonians that can live for up to 1000 years. They kill each other on a regular basis in order to weed out weakness, and now they have set their sights on bringing order to the rest of the galaxy. So far no hero has been able to close to besting one of these baddies in combat, not even the half-viltrumite protagonist of the series. How the heroes of the image universe will defeat this seemingly unstoppable threat is something that will have to answered in the coming months.
Geoff Johns' original characters are some of the most interesting in recent memory. Atrocitus was first featured in his "Secret Origin" arc of Green Lantern, and he's been one of the most fascinating villains of the year ever since. He's one of the sole survivors of a space sector that was massacred by rogue space cops, so it's pretty fair to say that this guy is resilient. He is also the founder a group of villains that rip enemies apart with nothing but physical strength, vomit blood, and burn their victims into nonexistence with the power of their hatred. He's one the most barbarous characters to appear in recent years, which is what makes him such a joy to watch.
Most comic fans like to joke about how powerful Superman was before the 80s. He could move entire planets and was pretty much indestructible. Luckily they've depowered him over the years in an effort to make him a more interesting character. Unfortunately, there is a Superboy from an alternate earth with all these abilities and more. He's also a psychopath who hates everything. In his first appearance he killed the real Superboy and tried to destroy the fabric of reality. He's a ridiculously overpowered child with no emotional maturity who is dead set on killing everyone he blames for losing his world. Kryptonite doesn't even work on this whiny punk. Superman had to push him through a red sun to beat him last time. Now that he's recovered from that, who is going to be able to stop someone with the powers of a god?
When most people thought of Sinestro before last year, they likely thought of his laughably misshapen head. Well the days of laughing at this purple skinned freak are over. Appearing naked at the beginning of The Sinestro Corp War was his last moment of hilarity. Now he is undeniably the greatest villain in the world of comics. Founding a group dedicated to the enslavement the universe and destroying the Green Lantern Corp should be enough for any would-be conqueror. What makes Sinestro such a fantastic villain is that he never truly loses. He always manages to snatch away some victory, even if he appears beaten. He didn't even care about ruling the galaxy. He created a space terrorist organization for the sole purpose of driving the Green Lantern Corp to use lethal force, so they would be stronger for a threat that only he seems to know about. What other forbidden knowledge that lurks behind those yellow eyes remains a mystery. One thing is clear, this is one alien who is not to be taken lightly.
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