Marvel vs. DC: Who Has the Better Supervillains?

Welcome back! I’m Steve Gustafson and if you enjoy discussing anything comic book related, you’ve come to the right place. Each week we cover something in the industry and I always enjoy your input in the comment section below.

Previously on…

  
 
Last time we asked Can Aquaman Be Cool? Here’s what some of you had to say:

Al Lobama: “This topic has come up many times before on Comics 411, and my answer hasn’t changed. Aquaman DOESN’T NEED TO BE COOL! The thing that makes Aquaman the most uncool is when creative teams try to force him to be cool. Just treat him like the Superman of the Oceans, and that’s all you need to do.

Now somebody tell DC to stop trying to fix Aquaman, because he isn’t broken. Work on Hawkman! That dude needs it more! ; )”

Ken Wood: “Namor is a bad mofo, so there’s no reason why Aquaman can’t be too.

This might sound weird but I just watched Dr. Strange and the way the sorcerers protect earth from all kind of mystical powers to the Avengers protecting earth from physical threats, this is kind of how Aquaman should be treated. There could be some seriously awesome villains under the sea that Aquaman and his people are constantly fighting – where pretty much no one else in the JLA can – to protect the earth. Sort of like how the Green Lantern Corps are out fighting threats all over space, where no one else really can.

I’ve honestly never read Aquaman because he’s always sounded lame but they could make him an awesome superhero.”

prowriter: “Yes, as Namor. I so want Namor now that Disney has the rights. Asshole Namor is awesome. Frankly, they need to ditch the blond hair and just rip the DC hero out of him if they want to change him. He suffers from a residual DC “taint” from years past, where everyone in the DC studios came in with suits to build model hero comic books for kids, came in in suits, where as Marvel had a far gritter, more realistic take on superheroes with ditching the hero part. People came into Stan’s studio in less former clothing.”

Some awesome comments last week! Thanks for the input and keep it coming!

This week we ask…

Who Has the Better Supervillains?

A superhero is only as good as his rogue gallery but who gives us a better lineup: DC or Marvel?

I almost boiled this down to who has better rogues: Spider-Man or Batman as they’ve got the best baddies from their respective comic book universes. Spidey can brag about the Green Goblin, the Lizard, Dr. Octopus, Sandman, Venom, Electro, the Rhino, Mysterio, and the Vulture. I could even throw Kingpin in the mix. Even his b-level guys are entertaining like Hobgoblin, Carnage, Shocker, Kraven, and a host of others. His gallery is filled with opportunity and a mid-level supervillain could easily join the big leagues if given a good enough storyline.

Which is just like Batman’s. The Joker, the Penguin, Mr. Freeze, Catwoman, Two-Face, the Riddler, Bane, Scarecrow, Ra’s al-Ghul, Clayface, Killer Croc, Poison Ivy, and Harley Quinn. That’s a top notch crew, to be sure.

So how does the rest of the supervillains stack up? Marvel has plenty of heavy hitters to stack up. Dark Phoenix, Thanos, and Apocalypse come off as an unbeatable combo. Add in Loki, Dr. Doom, and Magneto, and I think you have your winner right there.

But DC can answer back with Darkseid, Doomsday, and Anti-Monitor. When it comes to brains, how can you miss with Brainiac, Ozymandias, and Lex Luthor?

Sprinkle in Red Skull, Ultron, and Bullseye for Marvel and you can counter with Sinestro, Reverse Flash, and Deathstroke.

I could go on and list a host of others but I think they match up pretty well. It comes down to what type of villain you prefer. I’m more of a street-level guy over cosmic baddies. I prefer supervillain teams over one-on-one. I think DC has better supervillain teams but give Marvel the edge when it comes to the best solo supervillain. On the flip of that, I think Batman has a better rogues gallery over Spider-Man.

What about you? Who has the better supervillains: DC or Marvel?

That’s all the time I have. See you next week!