Everyone at some point in their life wants superpowers. From super strength to super-sonic flight, people dream about defying the laws of physics to enact power fantasies. However, some powers are so deadly or morally questionable that it would be deeply unsettling if someone wished for them, nonetheless, actually had them. Certain superpowers are unsettling because they can potentially be used to hurt people, either physically or psychologically.
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Heroes and villains across DC and Marvel Comics have used many of these dangerous abilities for both altruistic and selfish purposes. Yet, even when used for good, these powers can give people far too much control over others – control that can all too easily be abused. Some of these ghastly abilities seem intended to cause people to be overcome with fear, take them unawares, or transform them into gut-wrenching versions of their former selves.
10) Invisibility
Invisibility is used by many heroes, including Invisible Woman and Martian Manhunter, to sneak up on bad guys. While at first the power to be unseen might sound somewhat innocuous or nonthreatening, all you have to do is look at the infamous monster, the Invisible Man, to understand how truly nightmarish it can be. The idea that someone could be standing in the same room as you, watching your every move, without you even knowing it, is incredibly unsettling. Add in the idea that this invisible intruder can attack at any moment, and you’ve got a recipe for a haunting experience. Humanity has always had a deep-seated fear of the unknown and the unseen, and invisibility is the perfect ability to exploit those fears.
9) Life Force Absorption
The ability to absorb energy to make oneself stronger can be a beneficial power. Still, it can quickly turn into the stuff of nightmares depending on the type of energy absorbed. The power to drain a person of their life force through touch is an ability shared by Marvel’s superhero Rogue and DC’s supervillain Parasite. With just a touch, they can drain a person of their skills, memories, and energy. If they keep contact for too long, they can reduce their victim to a withered and lifeless husk as they drain them of every last drop of their energy. The ability to drain a person of their very essence like a vampire is incredibly dark and deadly.
8) Monster Transformation
While there are plenty of characters capable of shapeshifting in comics, there’s a special type that transforms both body and mind. The most popular version of this ability is that of werewolves, but in comics, there are plenty of other characters that can either voluntarily or involuntarily morph into mindless beasts, such as Marvel’s Lizard and the Hulk. This type of power can be disturbing for both the person who wields it and those around them. The process is often incredibly torturous as the person’s muscles and bones reshape, and their mind devolves into being driven by primal and savage urges. Not to mention the sheer horror of someone else having to witness a normal person contorted into such a hideous form that will kill anything in sight.
7) Dream Manipulation
Everyone needs a good night’s rest if they want to live a healthy life, but it’s also the time that you’re most vulnerable. Even worse, some villains can turn a person’s dreams against them. Villains like Nightmare on Elm Street’s Freddy Krueger and DC’s Doctor Destiny can enter their victims’ minds while they are sleeping to inflict insanity-inducing torture by exploiting their deepest fears and secrets. Doctor Destiny can even take it a step further by manifesting those same nightmares into the real world. Even worse, if you die in the dream, you die in real life. Of course, there is always the option to never go to sleep, but no doubt your body and your mind would not take kindly to this.
6) Death Touch
Some of the deadliest characters in comics are those that can kill people with a touch. Unlike with life force absorption, which takes a certain period of time to be lethal, characters with a death touch can kill a person instantly. The exact cause of death can vary from character to character. For example, the touch of Marvel’s Wither can instantaneously reduce people to dust, whereas DC Comics’ third Clayface can cause flesh to melt on contact. The nature of this lethal touch can also range from being entirely within the wielder’s control to being involuntary and unchecked. Either way, the mere thought that a single touch could extinguish your life is enough to fill anyone with paralyzing dread.
5) Mind Control
As Marvel’s Purple Man and DC’s Dr. Psycho have shown, the power to bend a person’s mind until they become a mindless puppet is truly the stuff of nightmares. With this ability, a person can turn others into slaves who will do literally anything that they are told to do. The victims of this ability can be commanded to hurt and kill others or even themselves. Mind control strips a person of their free will, with some people having no memory of their time as puppets. In contrast, other victims are forced to watch their bodies move on autopilot. Mind control is the perfect power for sadistic and manipulative individuals who want to control those around them.
4) Possession
In many ways, possession is like mind control, but far worse. Whether it be DC’s Deadman or Marvel’s Shadow King, the idea of a person invading your body and mind to make it their plaything is a terrifying concept. Not only is your body theirs to command, but you feel it as a foreign entity has taken up residence inside you like a spectral parasite. Your conscious mind is forcefully suppressed to make room for the intruder, and you can do nothing to protect yourself if the entity decides to torture you. Possession is one of the oldest fears in human history. There’s not much that’s scarier than having a creature inhabiting your mind and your body – watching as they perform horrible acts outside of your control.
3) Necromancy
Comic book characters are well-known for always coming back from the dead, but there are some supervillains with the power to bring people back as undead monsters. Necromancy gives the user the ability to raise an army of zombies to do their bidding. Zombies are scary enough already, but they become even more spine-chilling when they have a competent leader who can always create more soldiers to add to their ranks. Perhaps the best example of using this power to its fullest extent can be seen in DC’s Blackest Night, where Black Hand and Nekron resurrect nearly every deceased hero and villain into a bloodthirsty horde of animate corpses.
2) Penance Stare
The trademark ability of Marvel’s Ghost Rider, the Penance Stare, is the perfect tool for the Spirit of Vengeance. By looking into a person’s eyes, Ghost Rider can make them experience the collective pain and suffering of every person they have ever hurt. The process can leave people in agonizing physical and psychological pain or even eradicate their souls. The Penance Stare is one of the most psychologically devastating methods of torture in the Marvel Universe, quite literally making a person experience Hell right then and there. Only those who don’t feel a shred of remorse for their past deeds can withstand.
1) Reality Warping
Reality warping is the most dangerous ability there is, giving the user the godlike ability to reshape the world with a single thought. All of time and space bends to their will, and other people become mere playthings. You just need to look at characters like Marvel’s Scarlet Witch and Thanos to see the deadly effects reality warpers wield. Victims can have their bodies transmuted into inanimate objects, torn apart atom by atom, or have their very existence retconned from history. Reality warpers are the strongest and most versatile types of characters in comics, and it’s the infinite destructive potential that they possess that makes them so horrifying.
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