Marvel has created some of the greatest villains of all time. When you think of the bad guys of the House of Ideas, there are a few names that jump to the top of the list. Doctor Doom, Magneto, Thanos, and Galactus are all excellent villains and that’s before you get to Green Goblin, Sabretooth, Kingpin, and loads more. There are so many amazing villains that they sometimes suck up all of the air in the room, but they are literally just the tip of the spear. There are loads of compelling Marvel villains out there, and unfortunately, some of them never get the chance to be the great villain they can be. They’ve been forgotten, and that’s a shame.
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There was a time when Marvel comics would be full of minor villains. Back in the “one villain an issue” days, when multi-part stories were more rare, we got to see these minor villains a lot, and it was easy to remember how cool they could be. We’re long past those days, so a lot of minor villains never get any spotlight. You don’t remember how cool these seven Marvel villains are, but they are awesome.
7) Vermin
Edward Whelan seemingly had a good life, but was abused by his father. He ran away from home and was captured by Baron Zemo and Arnim Zola. The two of them experimented on the young man, imbuing him with rat traits, and Vermin was born. He became a beast that haunted the sewers, and played a key role in The Spectacular Spider-Man during the legendary J.M. DeMatteis/Sal Buscema run, appearing in his own stories and becoming a part of Carnage’s gang in “Maximum Carnage”. The rat monster can play numerous roles in stories, from deep psychological stories about abuse to simple stories where he’s just killing everyone around him. Vermin is a great villain, and it’s a shame that’s been forgotten.
6) Shriek
Carnage has changed a lot over the years, but there are some characters related to him that some creators remember and others don’t. Shriek is often one of the latter. The sonic-powered madwoman is basically those girls who fell in love with serial killers, except she has superpowers. She ended up becoming his girlfriend, and has helped him kill people on his various rampages. Her powers are pretty cool, as well; she can not only fire powerful sonic blasts, but also control minds using sounds that she can produce. She has a simple personality — she like serial killers, likes killing, and is insane — and can be a lot of fun when written right.
5) Toad
The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants is pretty powerful, but not every member is a world-beater. Toad is usually the least powerful member of the group; he doesn’t have amazing energy powers or mind-control abilities or super strength. He just jumps really high, has a long tongue, and acid spit. However, there’s just something fun about Mortimer Tonybee. The villain has often been looked down upon by the other members of the Brotherhood, and has become the butt of a lot of jokes, but he’s also led his own Brotherhood and battled X-Force and Generation X. When taken seriously, the hoppy mutant can be used as a potent villain. He has a long history with numerous characters, and his powers are pretty cool if they’re used right.
4) Bloodscream
Wolverine tackles some dangerous foes, but some of them don’t get the credit they deserve. Bloodscream is one of these. Hundreds of years ago, a man was made into a vampire. He was told that the only way to break the curse was to drink the blood of an immortal. The vampire hunted for years to find one and eventually found Wolverine. The two have been fighting ever since. Usually, the blood-crazed killer teams with Roughhouse, the two of them going after the ol’Canucklehead, sometimes for personal reasons and other times for professional ones. Bloodscream is a villain with a mysterious past, cool powers, and a great look. Maybe one day, some creator will realize that and make him into something cool.
3) Radioactive Man
The Stan Lee/Jack Kirby era of the House of Ideas is praised, but not every ’60s Marvel character is great. There are some duds, but there are also some who can be pretty cool that didn’t become superstars. Radioactive Man is one of the latter; he was cool, but he never caught on like other villains at his level . Chen Lu was a Chinese nuclear physicist, and was mutated by radiation, gaining control over radioactive energy, super strength, and invulnerability. He worked for the Chinese government, was a founding member of the Masters of Evil, and battled heroes like Iron Man and Thor. He’s such a cool villain; as a foreign national who works for the People’s Republic of China, he’s untouchable by the authorities in the US, which is a neat little wrinkle. He’s powerful enough to challenge the best heroes, as well. He’s a cool villain that can show up, do something wild, and then escape unscathed. He’s smart and powerful, and hopefully one day he’ll get the major story that he deserves.
2) Speed Demon
Marvel isn’t as known for its speedsters as its distinguished competition is. However, there are a few and one of the coolest is Speed Demon. James Sanders was recruited by the Elder of the Universe the Grandmaster to join a team that was playing for the ancient gamesman on one of the contests he is so obsessed with. He drank a potion that gave him super speed, pretended to be the Whizzer, a member of the Squadron Supreme, and would go on to battle numerous Marvel heroes, especially Spider-Man. He’d join the Sinister Syndicate, the Thunderbolts, and more. His super powers are pretty great, he’s got a fun personality, and a cool costume. This man deserves more spotlight than he’s gotten.
1) Boomerang
Boomerang was a D-list villain, who became important for a short time, and has since faded away. Fred Myers was an Australian who became a baseball pitcher, and would eventually use his skills to become a mercenary, working as a villain and using trick boomerangs. He got beat on constantly, joined the Thunderbolts, and just sort of languished most of the time. However, he was put into the cast of Nick Spencer’s Superior Foes of Spider-Man, and became a fan favorite. Spencer even brought the character over to The Amazing Spider-Man when he took over that book, making him Peter Parker’s roommate. Fans loved the villain, but Marvel has memory-holed everything about Spencer’s run on TASM, so he’s faded away as well. Hopefully soon, creators will bring the villain back to prominence.
What are your favorite minor Marvel villains? Leave a comment in the comment section below and join the conversation on the ComicBook Forums!
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