There have been a number of excellent movies based on Marvel comic books, as well as a fair share of misfires. Likewise, these movies contain some memorable and iconic villains, as well as some disappointing duds.
This week's rankings contain both the best and worst Marvel movie villains.
1. Magneto
Magneto is, in my opinion (and since I am the King of
this blog, my opinion is all that matters), the greatest comic book villain of
all time. The best villains should be powerful
and motivated while also eliciting empathy from the audience. Magneto has these qualities in spades; his
ability to create magnetic force fields and manipulate metal make him a dangerous
adversary, while his goal to eradicate all humans in the name of mutant
superiority is truly menacing. The
audience can sympathize with his motives, given his backstory as a holocaust
survivor, while still rooting for him to fail.
In the X-Men
films, Magneto is portrayed by two of the best actors of their generation: Sir
Ian McKellan and Michael Fassbender. Lesser actors may have been overwhelmed by the gravity of the character
and his moral dilemma, but both men gave powerhouse performances. Their chemistry with Charles Xavier (Patrick
Stewart and James McAvoy, respectively) is exceptional, and both McKelland and
Fassbender are responsible for some of the franchise’s best moments (Fassbender
was the unanimous MVP of X-Men: First
Class).
Magneto is as essential to the X-Men franchise as any single character (yes, even Wolverine), and
the depiction of the mutant team’s sometimes-arch-nemesis, sometimes-frienemy has been consistently superb throughout the series.
