Supermans 10 Most Underrated Villains Ranked
Superman’s 10 Most Underrated Villains, Ranked
Contents
From the unpredictable Toyman to the betrayal of Emil Hamilton, Superman has had unorthodox villains who deserve greater representation in media.
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It’s not easy bringing forward villains for DC’s Superman, as the Man of Steel has so many powers that he can be near unbeatable. He’s been challenged by the likes of Lex Luthor, Darkseid, Brainiac, among others, who are well-known as part of his rogue’s gallery. However, there have been other antagonists who have given Superman a difficult time and have the capacity to be larger threats.
Unfortunately, a lack of mainstream adaptations and fewer solo stories have caused these baddies to be relatively unknown to larger audiences. Some other antagonists are very popular, but the dynamic they have with Superman has been downplayed and a closer look will reveal that they do deserve to be considered among his archenemies.
10 Lobo
Lobo has developed into being an anti-hero, which has resulted in his original antagonism going under the radar. Initially, he and Superman had frequent clashes due to Lobo’s goal of targeting him after accepting contracts to take him down.
Lobo has been successful in battling Superman mainly because the latter is unable to understand Lobo’s chaotic personality, as he finds pleasure in fighting and disregarding logic. This kind of clash in mentalities is why Lobo deserves more recognition for the way he can both annoy and fight the Man of Steel. It’s worth remembering that Lobo’s also attempt to replace Superman in Justice League Unlimited as he tried to force himself into the team after the Man of Steel briefly disappeared.
9 Starro
Starro isn’t considered a mainline villain for the Man of Steel due to a lack of power moves. However, he’s not just beaten Superman, he’s taken him down with all his friends as well. Known to mainstream audiences due to his appearance in The Suicide Squad, some fans may not have realized that Starro has almost beaten the Justice League more than several times.
Starro affects the Man of Steel a bit more since his powers of mind control are something Superman is ill-equipped against. In Batman Beyond, Starro was shown to have kept Superman in his control for several years until the titular hero saved him, and it’s an interesting dynamic between the two as Superman’s innate goodness goes against Starro’s evil.
8 The Joker
The Joker has never been an underrated supervillain but he has been downplayed in his antagonism of Superman due to his long association as a Batman villain. However, The Joker’s ability to get under Superman’s skin isn’t appreciated as much for its effectiveness, as he’s successfully forced Superman to abandon his ways.
This was best seen in the popular Injustice plotline (which is certainly worth a movie adaptation for its sheer quality). Here, The Joker killed Lois Lane and turned Superman into an absolute tyrant, accomplishing the Joker’s goal of corrupting him. The dynamic between these two is entertaining on its own but hasn’t been in as much focus as it deserves.
7 Bloodsport
The effectiveness this villain had against Superman is something only comic book fans are aware of about Bloodsport. It’s too bad this hasn’t been well-known to mainstream audiences, as Bloodsport successfully shot the Man of Steel with a Kryptonite bullet in Superman vol. 2 #4.
He’s mainly underrated due to being a normal human, yet this is why he should be more notable as he was able to defeat the extremely powerful Kryptonian. Superman had to ask Bloodsport’s brother to call him off, showing just how intimidating he thought the villain to be.
6 Livewire
It’s not talked about enough that Livewire was so intriguing for an animated Superman villain that she’s transitioned into the comics. First appearing in Superman: The Animated Series, Livewire has proven to be a unique antagonist as she is someone that Superman can’t just punch away due to her superhuman abilities.
Livewire’s ability to take over any kind of electronics and run into any media item has caused Superman to be clueless over how to attack her and it’s underrated how the Man of Steel has had to use his mind to defeat her rather than his powers. Her resentment of Superman is also interesting since she believes he deliberately caused an electrical surge to run into her, which has led to her becoming a villain.
5 Parasite
Parasite is another villain who forces Superman to be on his guard and has made him fearful of their encounters. His power of draining out life energies has enabled him to go toe to toe with Superman after absorbing his abilities, which makes their fights entertaining as Superman can’t easily overpower him.
It generally goes unnoticed that Parasite is usually the villain Superman engages in battles between villains and the Justice League, as the former is one of the few who can get the drop on the Man of Steel. The character has played this role very well for many years and it’s too bad he doesn’t get as many solo moments to shine.
4 Toyman
It’s always a different experience to see Superman being bamboozled, especially by an enemy who doesn’t have powers. Toyman’s advancements in robotics have been shown to be so extreme that he creates toys that have placed Superman in deadly games where he’s been forced to escape.
His greatest achievement was in Justice League Unlimited, where Toyman fired an energy blast at Superman that vaporized him and sent him into the future. There aren’t too many unorthodox Superman stories, which makes Toyman a worthy exception. Still, the villain doesn’t get enough publicity for making this aspect possible.
3 Professor Hamilton
It was shocking at the time of the release of Adventures of Superman #636, where it was revealed that Professor Hamilton was the villain Ruin, who used red Krypton sunlight to attack Superman. Having been a long-running ally of the Man of Steel, it was a huge moment that the once kindly scientist was an antagonist.
His villainy is underrated for how big of a betrayal he doled out to Superman, as the latter didn’t see a close friend turning on him. In Justice League Unlimited, he willingly joined Cadmus to experiment on Supergirl, becoming disillusioned with superpowered beings in general. There are very few characters who have emotionally antagonized Superman this way, which mainstream fans should know more about.
2 Mongul
Mongul isn’t underrated when it comes to the comics, as he’s been a long-running foe, but he’s somehow been underrepresented in live-action and other media. As the ruler of Warworld, he’s hosted gladiatorial games from across the universe, even forcing Superman to fight in them.
This is the kind of setup that would work very well in a movie or TV series, yet Mongul hasn’t been made use of in this form, and audiences at large aren’t too aware of him. That’s not the best way to go about a character who can physically overpower Superman and turn him into his controlled fighter.
1 Mister Mxyzptlk
Responsible for bringing forward some of the weirdest comic book arcs for Superman, Mister Mxyzptlk is a trickster deity, notable for being one of the few villains to easily be more powerful than Superman. As a reality-bender, he can do whatever he wants to Superman and get away with it.
The problem with his presentation has been recent stories adapting him into a comic relief rather than showing his true threat. Initially Mister Mxyzptlk caused total havoc to antagonize Superman and the latter had to either request him to undo it or try and trick him. He has the potential to be the greatest adversary Superman has ever had, which is why it’s a shame Mister Mxyzptlk’s portrayal is limited and his overpowering Superman isn’t widely known.
Link Source : https://screenrant.com/superman-underrated-comic-villains/
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