10 Best New Marvel Villains of the Last 10 Years

The last ten years have been some of the most interesting in Marvel history. 2016 for Marvel was one of those periods where the old order was changing, as the Avengers were starting their long fall from prominence, the X-Men were being marginalized for the Inhumans, and new characters like Kamala Khan, Miles Morales, and Sam Alexander were on the way up. Since then, we’ve gotten numerous major Marvel events, the Krakoa Era of the X-Men, the bulk of Jane Foster as Thor run, the rise of the symbiotes, The Immortal Hulk, and numerous other awesome developments that allowed the publisher to stay in control of the majority of the comic market until recently. It’s been a somewhat tumultuous time for the publisher, but it’s definitely been eventful (both in that cool events happened and just so many event comics were published).

The publisher has introduced numerous new characters over the decade, including some rather noteworthy villains. These antagonists have had an uphill battle, against both the heroes and the House of Ideas’ older and more popular villains, but some of them have been better than the rest. These are the ten best Marvel villains of the last decade, bad guys who have the chance to join the highest echelons of evil.

10) Sarah Gaunt

Uncanny X-Men has been outstanding since its return, giving readers a pretty great Claremont X-Men homage. In the book’s first storyline, readers were introduced to Sarah Gaunt. An Oxford student and self-proclaimed witch was an early girlfriend of Charles Xavier, but the two of them had a falling out at some point. Later in life, her and her son would be caught in a hurricane, and when she came out of it, she was a powerful monster. She thrashed two of the X-Men’s toughest characters, Rogue and Wolverine, proving she had the villainous bona fides. There’s way more to Sarah than meets the eye, and fans can’t wait to learn more about her.

9) The Twilight Court

The Twilight Court has been one of the main villains of Jed MacKay’s Avengers. While this run hasn’t been nearly as successful as Marvel probably hoped — MacKay’s Marvel’s next big writer, but he’s really only done well on solo titles — this group of villains has been pretty great. Brought together by the mysterious Myrddin, their job is to try to get the Missing Moment, which is an event that has been pulled out of time. The team, consisting of Myrddin, Bedivere the Engineer, Bercilak the Construct, Galehaut the God, Lancelot the Star, Mordred the Witch, and Parsifal the Icon, are exactly the kind of the villains the Avengers need in the 21st century. This King Arthur themed group is a perfect match for the current Avengers team, and have proved it in battle. They’ve appeared in the best parts of MacKay’s Avengers run, and have loads of potential in the future.

8) Krakoa Era Nimrod

The Krakoa Era was the perfect reboot for the X-Men after years of marginalization and introduced readers to numerous great villains. One of the best of them was the Nimrod of the Krakoa Era. Now, Nimrod first appeared in the ’80s, but this version of the ultimate Sentinel was a completely new one, his mind based on the memory template of the human Erasmus Mendel. He took such maniacal glee in trying to destroy the mutant race and became a favorite of many X-Men fans. While there were a few too many “funny” villains in the Krakoa Era, the sheer fear that Nimrod inspired made him stand out.

7) Mother Righteous

Mister Sinister is a top rank X-Men villain, and the Krakoa Era changed the character and his history completely. You’re going to find a lot of Krakoa Era villains on this list, and one of the most interesting was Mother Righteous. She was one of four clones created by Nathaniel Essex, a Victorian scientist trying to become a Dominion, an omnipotent being outside of space and time, and was thought for years to be Sinister himself. She was based on his wife, and was the magic-using one of the group. She was probably the snarkiest of the four Sinisters and was a highlight of a somewhat maligned ending of a beloved era.

6) Isca the Unbeaten

The Krakoa Era introduced readers to one of the most interesting groups of mutants ever, the Arakkii. They were residents of the island Arakko, the sister-island of Krako,a created when Okkara, the mutant continent, was sundered by the hordes of Amenth. The Arakkii went into Otherworld to battle the monsters to save Earth, and eventually surrendered. One of their greatest warriors was Isca the Unbeaten, a mutant whose power is to win any contest. She was a fierce fighter, but joined Amenth when it was clear they were going to win, a huge blow to the Arakkii. She fought alongside her sister Genesis and the Sword-Bearers of Arakko in “X of Swords”, and would join the Great Ring (their ruling council) when the island was sent to a terraformed Mars. She betrayed them again in the battle with Uranos, and made for an awesome antagonist every time she showed up, her mutant powers manifesting in interesting ways to keep her from losing. She’s a great villain with an amazing concept.

5) Enigma

So, this one might not count to some, since Nathaniel Essex did appear before this, but Enigma was arguably an entirely new version of the character. Essex was obsessed with becoming a Dominion, so he created four clones — Mister Sinister, Mother Righteous, Doctor Stasis, and Orb Stellaris — each of whom was unknowingly testing how to become a Dominion based on their specialty: mutants, magic, humans, and aliens. At some point, he became a Dominion and became the big bad of the end of the Krakoa Era. While an argument can be made against him as a great villain, he was one of the better parts of the end of the Krakoa Era.

4) The Eldest

The latest run of The Incredible Hulk was horror-oriented, pitting him against the children of the Lovecraftian Mother of Monsters. The Mother of Monsters was trying to come back to the Earth, with her forces led by the Eldest, the oldest of her children. However, the beast had its own ideas and was able to destroy its mother on the cusp of her greatest victory, taking over the body of the Hulk. Marvel is building this new chapter of the story in The Infernal Hulk, as this new, even more powerful monster turns his sights on the rest of the world.

4) Genesis

Jonathan Hickman’s Krakoa Era X-Men was pretty uneven, with many fans not really enjoying “X of Swords”. However, the story did have some of the coolest villains ever, with Genesis being one of the most important. She was the Okkaran wife of Apocalypse and birthed the First Horseman. The two of them had led the ancient mutant civilization, with her being the more brutal and Darwinian. She ended up leading her people against Amenth, and became the host of Annihilation, the demonic force that ruled the abyssal plane. She battled her husband, with the two of them staying in Amenth after “X of Swords”, but would be drawn back to Arakko when Annihilation came back, and because she believed that Storm was weakening her people. She fought a war against Storm and the Arakkii and lost, but proved to be an awesome villain.

2) Tarn the Uncaring

Tarn the Uncaring was the most evil of the Arakkii by a wide margin. Known as a “genetic wizard” with powers that allowed him to control the mutant abilities of others, his monstrous cruelty become his chief trait. He crafted his own strike force of mutants, the Locus Vile, and battled the Hellions during “X of Swords”. After Arakko was moved to Mars, he joined the Great Ring and continued to cause trouble, fighting Storm in the arena for leadership, a battle which she was able to win. He killed the Summers brother Vulcan, who fought him for his seat on the Great Circle at the behest of Krakoan traitor Abigail Brand, but was challenged by Magneto immediately after. Magneto killed him, although he did return in the afterlife in The Resurrection of Magneto. He is easily one of the best parts of the Krakoa Era, and fans would love to get him back.

1) Solem

Solem is another Arakkii introduced in “X of Swords”, an adamantium-skinned master combatant who has become one of Wolverine’s most dangerous villains. He was raised a pirate on Arakko when it was in Otherworld, becoming one of the fiercest of his people. He was captured and freed to help battle Krakoa in the dimension-shaking battle. He and Wolverine clashed multiple times, Solem’s jovial nature clashing with Logan’s more professional vibe, with them working together and fighting depending on the situation. He’s a master manipulator, which Wolverine learned to his chagrin, and is excellent in battle. He’s disappeared since A.X.E. Judgment Day, but Wolverine fans are waiting patiently for his return.

What are your favorite villains of the last decade? Leave a comment in the comment section below and join the conversation on the ComicBook Forums!

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