Superman is the Earth’s greatest defender, having faced off against every threat imaginable. He uses his powers to save people from disasters and accidents, all while battling some of the most dangerous beings on Earth. When people think of the Man of Steel’s enemies, they usually think of Lex Luthor first. There’s a great reason for this, as Lex is a powerful, intelligent foe with boundless charisma and technology. If we’re being honest, though, he’s not the greatest Superman villain of them all. Sure, he gets all of the credit and the other villains follow his lead, but there is a villain out there greater than Luthor: Brainiac.
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Superman fights the most dangerous threats in the universe, and even among them, Brainiac is on another level. Over the years, the character has morphed and changed, pulling off attacks that make Lex Luthor’s most unhinged plans look tame. The Coluan cyborg is on another level. He was once considered one of the greatest Superman villains, but that changed, especially in the post-Crisis DC Universe. However, it’s time to admit that the evil alien genius is Superman’s greatest villain.
Brainiac Was a Silver Age Sensation but Mistakes Were Made with Changes to the Character
Brainiac was the the first major Superman villain introduced in the Silver Age, and he represented one of the changes to comics in this era. The Silver Age was all about the weird sci-fi for DC Comics, and Brainiac was a perfect example of that in action. The Golden Age introduced the mad scientist, but this new villain was a modification on that. He was super-genius from another planet, Colu, and used his 12th-level intelligence to create powerful weapons and technology. He was the one who shrank the Kryptonian city of Kandor, making him an important part of the Superman mythos, and he soon became a villain on par with Luthor.
Back in the Silver Age, Brainiac and Luthor would have team-ups against Superman, with them usually ending with the two villains trying to screw each other over, allowing the heroes to defeat him. He was the perfect Silver Age villain, combining the ideas of the past — a mental powerhouse battling the physical powerhouse that is the Man of Steel — with the sci-fi that was the hallmark of the Silver Age. Brainiac was Superman’s best villain back then, his greater technology and cybernetics making him more versatile than Luthor. However, changes would be made to the character that didn’t work in the Bronze Age.
Brainiac was made into a cyborg, given a robotic body to make him more of a threat. He also got the cool skull-shaped ship during this time, but it was the only good part of this change. His original alien form fit who he was better than the robot form, which seemed to exist only to make him a more physical threat than before. Later, post-Crisis, Brainiac began as a Coluan that transferred his mind into the human psychic Milton Fine, which was the lamest way to bring the villain back into the modern day. He’d get the robot body back, and it wouldn’t be until after Infinite Crisis that he finally reached his perfect form.
“Brainiac”, by Geoff Johns and Gary Frank, focused on Brainiac as a cosmic predator, traveling the universe and stealing cities. The robotic bodies were revealed to be drones, and the true Brainiac was revealed — the green alien of the past, with strength as vast as his intelligence. He became a more well-rounded threat, but the years haven’t been kind to Vril Dox’s legacy. He’s been made so unimportant since his Silver Age heyday that creators barely used him, with 2024’s “House of Brainiac” the first major story starring the villain in years. It’s about time we got more Brainiac, because he’s much more important than he gets credit for.
Brainiac Can Be the Biggest Superman Villain Again with Minimal Work
Brainiac started out huge, and the changes made to the character in the Bronze Age hurt him immensely. Those old Luthor/Brainiac comics were outstanding (especially any of the ones drawn by Curt Swan), and we’ve barely gotten anything like that in recent years. Robot Brainiac was a bad idea (although the skull ship is perfect), and it broke the readers’ esteem for the character. However, DC bringing back the old school Brainiac is the key to making the character great again. He’s smart and physically powerful, and is definitely ready for his close-up.
Absolute Superman is positioning Brainiac as a major part of the universe. Rumors about the Superman sequel Man of Tomorrow point to the Coluan finally making his big screen debut. The alien super-genius is everything a Superman villain should be. He has history with the hero, is powerful and intelligent, and can be used in numerous kinds of stories. Hopefully, the rumors are true about the movie, and Brainiac will regain his place atop the villain hierarchy.
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