It is often stated that a hero is only as good as its villain. This is especially apparent when it comes to comic book movies and tv shows. While some villains are underwhelming and bland, others are very interesting and fun to watch. In honor of WandaVision recently having its series premiere, here is a list of the top ten best comic book tv show villains of all time.
10. Jordan Mahkent/Icicle (Stargirl): I will be honest. I went into Stargirl with very low expectations. Outside of Doom Patrol, I had little confidence in live-action DC superhero shows after the Arrowverse let me down so many times and Titans had a very underwhelming second season. However, within the first episode I was won over. Stargirl’s debut season was a great first impression for the show and part of that is due to the villain Jordan Mahkent/Icicle (Neil Jackson). As the leader of the Injustice Society of America, the sworn enemies of the Justice Society of America, Icicle proved to be a huge threat towards Courtney Whitmore (Brec Bassinger) and Pat Dugan (Luke Wilson). Not only were his ice powers incredibly dangerous, but he was shown to be a well respected citizen of the town Blue Valley and was able to seem like a beloved member of the community. This villain was shown to be extremely ruthless and was willing to kill anyone who stood in his way. However, unlike the other members of the ISA, Icicle was not a monster. His goal of brainwashing the entire country was due to him trying to help the world after his wife died due to the actions of greedy corporations. He is also a loving father, wanting nothing but the best for his son Cameron (Hunter Sansone). With him being both an intimidating villain and sympathetic character, Icicle is one of the main standouts during season 1 of Stargirl and absolutely makes up for that embarrassing version of the character that was seen in season 5 of The Flash.
9. Jerome Valeska (Gotham): This may be an unpopular opinion, but it would be a crime not to include Gotham’s proto-Joker on this list. While Robin Lord Taylor is amazing as the Penguin and Cory Michael Smith gives an incredible performance as the Riddler, it is Cameron Monaghan that steals the show as this sadistic maniac whenever he appeared in the series. Originally seen as the show’s official version of the Joker, Jerome Valeska proved to be a very popular character, as the ratings for the show were highest whenever Monaghan portrayed the character. With him constantly bringing Gotham into chaos and regularly targeting a young Bruce Wayne (David Mazouz), Valeska is pure evil. There is next to nothing to sympathize with him about and yet he is always engaging and terrifying. While it is unfortunate that he never became the official Joker, it was still very entertaining to watch him. Most people agree that this character was one of the best villains in Gotham and never once had a dull moment whenever he appeared.
8. Billy Russo/Jigsaw (The Punisher): Of the main villains that appeared in The Punisher, Billy Russo (Ben Barnes) may not be the most evil, but he is certainly the most tragic. Once the best friend of Frank Castle (Jon Bernthal), Russo completely threw his friendship away when he helped orchestrate the murder of the former’s family in order to receive fortune and glory. The majority of The Punisher’s first season revolves around Russo trying to cover his tracks alongside William Rawlins (Paul Shulze), the man who gave the order to kill Frank’s family. Towards the end of the first season, Billy is is permanently scarred after a brutal final fight with Frank. During the second season, we see Russo portrayed in a more sympathetic light as he receives amnesia from his encounter with his former best friend. Now starting a criminal gang, Russo causes more havoc throughout the season, which inevitably puts him at odds with Frank once again, leading to satisfying but also heartbreaking final confrontation between the two as a mortally wounded Russo is executed by his former best friend just when he is sincerely apologizing for all the pain and suffering he caused him. Barnes is terrific in the role, as the actor effortlessly portrays a vicious and manipulative assassin who shows little to no remorse for his crimes during the first season only to then portray a broken and pathetic man who is longing for a sense of purpose. After Frank Castle, Billy Russo is easily the most compelling character to appear in The Punisher.
7. Eric Morden/Mr. Nobody (Doom Patrol): It’s not often that you have a villain in a superhero show that constantly breaks the fourth wall without it seeming out of place and forced, yet Mr. Nobody (Alan Tudyk) is a character that does so without breaking a sweat. Even Deadpool would be jealous of how much this supervillain gets away with it. As the main antagonist of Doom Patrol’s first season, Eric Morden/Mr. Nobody is an omnipresent reality warping supervillain who serves as the show’s unofficial narrator. Originally a lowlife criminal who no one ever took seriously, Eric Morden became Mr. Nobody after receiving superpowers in an experiment conducted by Nazis. Having a massive grudge against Niles Caulder/The Chief (Timothy Dalton) for ruining his life and apparently disfiguring him when he tried to stop the experiment, Mr. Nobody kidnaps the leader of the Doom Patrol in a twisted scheme while mentally breaking the other members of the team throughout the season. However, while the Doom Patrol are never actually able to defeat Mr. Nobody, it becomes more than apparent that he is an even bigger loser than them, with him only having his powers to justify his value and not possessing any real purpose outside of messing with the Doom Patrol. Tudyk is hilarious as Mr. Nobody and helps elevate the character just as much as the show’s brilliant writing. Mr. Nobody is not the most well known DC villain, but he certainly is one of the most memorable antagonists once you see him on the show.
6. Lionel Luthor (Smallville): While many of the villains on this list are complex characters, none of them can compare to Lionel Luthor. A ruthless businessman and horrible father, Lionel is arguably the reason why his son Lex (Michael Rosenbaum) becomes such a monster towards the end of the series. Originally starting out as the main villain of Smallville’s first half, Lionel transitions from Clark Kent’s (Tom Welling) number one enemy to almost an ally who can’t necessarily be completely trusted, but is no longer the backstabbing monster that he was at the beginning of the show. While some may argue that Lex Luthor is the best villain in Smallville, Lionel arguably made the greatest impact as he proved to be quite the problem to Clark when he was an antagonist and his treatment of Lex during his early life is partly what pushes the latter to become a Superman’s archenemy. When Lionel is pushed off a building by his own son, he dies a changed man, but also a very flawed one as he failed as a father and the damage he caused throughout the show’s first four seasons cannot be undone. John Glover gave a terrific performance and proved to be one of the best aspects of Smallville even during its weaker seasons.
5. Wilson Fisk/Kingpin (Daredevil): Kingpin has always been a character that has been portrayed decently onscreen. Even in the 2003 Daredevil movie people agree that Michael Clarke Duncan’s Wilson Fisk was one of the film’s main strengths. While there have been many great adaptations of the Kingpin character, Vincent D’Onofrio’s version of the villain is by far the best one. As we watch Fisk try to control the criminal underworld of New York City, we also see him struggle with his personal life, being haunted for murdering his abusive father as a child and attempting to balance his career and relationship with his love interest Vanessa (Ayelet Zurer). While we feel sorry for him, we also obviously want Matt Murdock/Daredevil (Charlie Cox) to take him down. He becomes even more of a frightening villain during season 3, as he manipulates the FBI and manages to turn the mentally unstable agent Benjamin Poindexter (Wilson Bethel) into a supervillain. His cruel nature is elevated as he now murders even more innocent people in order to get revenge on Murdock for imprisoning him. D’Onofrio’s outstanding performance and the fantastic writing for the character allow this version of Kingpin to be one of the best comic book tv show villains of all time.
4. Adrian Chase/Prometheus (Arrow): When it comes to villainy, seeking vengeance on the hero is nothing new, especially in a DC property. However, it is arguable that no villain in comic book tv has done it in as fresh of a way as Adrian Chase/Prometheus (Josh Segarra). Adrian Chase made it his goal to make Oliver Queen/Green Arrow (Stephen Amell) suffer after the latter murdered his father during his time hunting down and killing criminals. Chase plays Oliver like a fiddle throughout the show’s fifth season, using his power as the District Attorney of Star City to seem like a well respected figure which makes it harder for people to believe that he is a ruthless serial killer. He also pretends to be a good friend of Oliver, making it a deeper blow when his identity is eventually revealed to the hero. Even when it seems like Oliver may have the upper hand, the villain always manages to be ten steps ahead of him. As Chase puts it, he knows Oliver better than anyone, including himself. It becomes so difficult for the Green Arrow to take the villain down that he is forced to team up with Malcolm Merlyn (John Barrowman) and Slade Wilson/Deathstroke (Manu Bennett), two of his sworn enemies. Segarra is terrifying as Prometheus, always seeming like he is pulling the strings in every situation. His chemistry with Amell is especially noteworthy, as one of the best episodes in the entire show demonstrates where Chase emotionally breaks Oliver by forcing him to admit that he likes killing. No villain in the series, not even someone like Deathstroke, had ever been able to break the Green Arrow like Chase did. Adrian Chase is an incredible villain and easily the best antagonist to appear in Arrow.
3. Eobard Thawne/Reverse-Flash (The Flash): The Arrowverse has had many great villains, but when it comes down to it, Eobard Thawne/Reverse-Flash (Tom Cavanaugh and Matt Letscher) made the greatest impact out of all of the antagonists to appear in each show. The archenemy of Barry Allen/The Flash, the Reverse-Flash is a supervillain from the future who traveled back in time and killed the former’s mother when he was a child. However, in doing so he was trapped in the past with no way back. In order to get home, Thawne intentionally causes the event that turns Barry into the Flash. Pretending to be a father-figure mentor to Barry named Harrison Wells, Thawne helps Barry get faster throughout the first season while secretly manipulating him into getting him back to the future. Even after his defeat at the end of the season, Thawne always finds a way to come back, even appearing as the main villain of DC’s Legends of Tomorrow season 2 and a supporting antagonist helping an army of Nazis during the crossover Crisis on Earth-X. Thawne is a terrific villain and arguably the most entertaining one from the Arrowverse. While other villains may have caused trouble for Barry and made him go through a great deal of pain, none of them have been as personal or as hated as Thawne, who is always delighted to make his archenemy miserable whenever he can throughout the entire series.
2. Homelander (The Boys): While I’m sure there have been takes on an evil Superman, none of them have been nearly as compelling or terrifying as Homelander (Antony Starr). As the leader of the popular superhero group The Seven and the most powerful superhero created by the company Vought, Homelander is an extremely powerful individual who is able to install fear into anyone who works for him. Those who are brave or foolish enough to stand up to him are instantly killed for their actions. Unlike Superman, Homelander does not care about the safety of innocent people, nor does he even like them. He is fully willing to let anyone die and pass their deaths off as collateral damage. Barley anyone who knows Homelander even like him, as they are instead immensely afraid of what he might do to them if they ever get on his bad side in some way. As the show goes on, we see more and more just how much of a monster Homelander is. Not only is he a massive narcissist, but he is also a complete psychopath, murdering several people who might seem like they are on his side. The most notable example is Madelyn Stillwell (Elizabeth Shue), an executive at Vought who Homelander was infatuated with. Stillwell was the only person who was ever really able to confidently stand up to Homelander and put him in his place during the first season. However, once it is revealed that she was hiding secrets from him, he personally kills her in one of the most brutal death scenes in comic book tv. One of the most fascinating things about Homelander is his rivalry with Billy Butcher (Karl Urban), as the former raped his wife Becca (Shantel VanSanten), making their conflict extremely personal. Starr is amazing as Homelander, managing to be one of the scariest villains in television, but also managing to make you feel sorry for the character, as he had no one growing up, making it understandable why he is the person you see in the first two seasons of The Boys. There is no doubt that Homelander will go down as one of the greatest villains in television due to the fantastic writing for the character and amazing performance from Starr.
1. Kilgrave (Jessica Jones): There are villains that you love to hate and then there’s Kilgrave (David Tennant). Quite possibly the most evil villain from the Marvel Netflix universe, Kilgrave is a powerful individual with the ability to force people into doing anything he wants just by telling them to. This naturally makes avoiding the law very easy for him, as anyone who comes into contact with him is powerless once he gives them a command. Of all the villains in comic book tv, Kilgrave is the one who can just get under your skin the most, as he is not a megalomaniac who wants to destroy the world, but a sociopath who simply likes getting what he wants. His relationship with Jessica Jones (Krysten Ritter) is the main highlight of the show, as you can feel Jessica’s hatred for Kilgrave and understand why she is such a jaded individual after her encounter with him. Kilgrave first met Jessica when she was just starting her career as a superhero. After kidnapping her and forcing her to become his lover, he made Jessica do many sick and perverted things for his pleasure. This unsettling “relationship” reached its breaking point when Kilgrave forced her to murder a woman, which is the action that made her able to resist him. With Jessica being the one thing he can’t get with his powers, Kilgrave goes through great lengths to make Jessica fall in love with him, being under the delusion that they could ever be a couple and she can just forgive all the things he did to her. Unable to take any responsibility for his actions, Kilgrave is a monster through and through, callously taking many lives in his quest for Jessica without any remorse and threatening her at several points to be with him or he will kill more innocent people. When it finally becomes clear to him that Jessica will never love him, he decides to get revenge on his forced former lover and make her suffer instead of simply admitting defeat and leaving her alone. When Jessica finally takes down Kilgrave at the end of season 1, it is one of the most satisfying moments in television history, as his comeuppance was well deserved. However, even after his death he still continues to haunt Jessica, taunting her for being a killer and not being able to keep people close to her. Tennant is magnificent in the role, portraying the character with a heavy amount of charisma, but still being able to make him unlikeable. Due to all of this, Kilgrave is not just the best villain to ever appear in a comic book show, but also one of the best antagonists to ever appear in a television series.
