The Avengers are one of the most popular superhero teams in the world. While a major part of that is the fame granted by the Marvel Cinematic Universe, they are definitely worth loving on their own merit. Their endlessly rotating cast of characters, with a few mainstays, brings in heroes from every corner of the Marvel Universe. There’s the saying that everyone has been an Avenger, and that’s only a slight exaggeration. Of course, they say that a hero is only as good as their villain, and the Avengers have some incredible villains. Some get far more screentime than others, but they’ve fought a whole lot of bad guys over the years, and they all deserve the spotlight.
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Today, we’re going to take a look at five Avengers villains who deserve the chance to headline their own massive story once again. They’ve almost all had a story or two in recent years, but these villains have what it takes to push the Earth’s Mightiest Heroes to the very brink, and they need to remind us why. So, without further ado, let’s leap into some vengeful villains.
5) Count Nefaria
Father of Madame Masque and leader of the Maggia, Count Nefaria is both a gangster-style villain and a major threat, given that he has the same ionic powers as Wonder Man. His goal has always been to gain more power and control, and to ensure that a surplus of ionic beings was around for him to drain their energy. His unique mix of raw power and control over street-level crime makes him the perfect person to attack the Avengers on all sides. He can challenge them himself and use his legion of criminals to force them to fight crimes all across New York. He’s a special mix that needs to be explored more, certainly.
4) Baron Zemo
Speaking of Count Nefaria, let’s talk about his one-time boss, Baron Zemo. Zemo is one of the Avengers’ oldest and most devious villains, pulling the strings for all kinds of villainy and evil groups. However, despite his cunning and importance, it’s been a long while since he’s been relevant for more than an occasional story here or there. Zemo has been a defining villain in the past, forcibly shaking up the Avengers at their foundation, but he’s all but faded into the background in the last few years. He can be that monstrous force once again, and him emerging from doing practically nothing to bring ruin fits his character perfectly.
3) Korvac
Korvac is a villain that operates on an entirely different scale than most. He’s a cosmic being from a parallel future, always aiming to either subjugate the universe under his supposedly benevolent rule or attain more and more power. Korvac is so monstrously strong that entire teams of superheroes stand no chance against him, but despite his immense power, unlike most cosmic-level entities, he’s a deeply flawed man at the end of the day. The best stories always focus on heart, and a cosmic odyssey with Korvac’s disastrous humanity is the perfect setup for a grand, sprawling epic.
2) Elements of Doom
Unlike the other entrants on this list, the Elements of Doom are very obscure, with fewer than ten total appearances. Still, I say they have the potential to make it big. They are a group of living constructs based on the elements of the periodic table, created by alien invaders. This group has one member for each element, which means that they can combine their powers in literally an infinte number of ways to create anything. This group is begging for a creative story, like a full-scale invasion with their entire army battling the Avengers in a chemical war. All these guys need is the right story to make it into the big leagues.
1) Ultron
The Avengers’ number one robot villain is still an icon to this day, but even with his popularity as great as it is, he’s fallen from the threat level he once had. Ultron used to be a monster of the highest caliber. He was a threat that took entire teams to even hold off, let alone defeat. Ultron could wage war on the Avengers and nearly come out on top, but nowadays, he’s far from nearly conquering the world. Ultron is a fantastic villain who has fought practically everybody in Marvel, but he deserves to stand as one of the greatest powers in the universe. When Ultron shows up, it should inspire nothing but fear, and a new story where he takes on everyone would do exactly that.
Which Avengers villain would you want to see take center stage? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
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