5 Justice Leaguers Who Have Been Villains (And Why It Worked)

Superheroes are meant to represent the best parts of ourselves. They are the endlessly kind, selfless, heroic fragments of our souls who always strive to help everyone and save the day. They are a sign of what we could be and a call to action to be better than we are. In DC, there’s no greater showcase of that heroism than the Justice League. This team of incredible super-saviors has saved the multiverse more times than anyone could count. They are the pinnacle of all things superheroic in the DC Universe, standing tall as the bastions of order and protection for everyone. Yet, not even these heroes can be perfect all the time.

The Justice League is staffed by DC’s greatest heroes, but sometimes those heroes have crossed the line and fallen to the dark side of things, leading to them becoming like the very villains they swore to keep us safe from. Today, we’re taking a look at five Justice Leaguers who have been villains at one point, and discussing why this sudden shift in mentality actually worked for them instead of hurting them. So, without further ado, let’s juggle these Justice League Judases.

5) The Spectre

The Spectre is one of DC’s most powerful characters. He’s an angel sent down to Earth to punish the wicked and enforce the wrath of God, serving as the inescapable spirit of vengeful justice. However, as a being of pure vengeance with a righteous attitude and desire to destroy the wicked, the Spectre can easily lose control. He must be bound to a human host who can guide him along the path, helping him see the nuance of situations and reminding him that not every sin deserves death. When he doesn’t have that human connection, however, he’s liable to destroy the world in his quest to purify it.

That’s exactly what happened in the Day of Judgement event, which saw the Spectre bonded to the demon, Asmodel. The demon-angel duo froze Hell and unleashed havoc across the world, even going so far as to destroy New York City. The Spectre has always been a character on the edge, and even as a hero, he’s liable to go too far and destroy lives around him. He’s scary enough as a good guy, but as a villain he’s absolutely terrifying. This showed us just how much destructive force the Spectre’s host holds back, and how horrifying he could be if he so chose.

4) Hal Jordan

Speaking of the Spectre, let’s dive into the character whose path out of villainy was intimately tied with the spirit’s. Hal Jordan once served as the greatest Green Lantern of all, but everything changed when Coast City was destroyed in nuclear fire by Cyborg Superman. This made Hal snap, and he charged through space, claiming rings from his fellow Lanterns to increase his own power. In the end, he bathed in the light of the Central Power Battery and was reborn as Parallax, a near-unstoppable villain dedicated to resetting time to make things right. Most of all, he wanted to undo his mistakes

Hal’s flip to villainy was practically nonsensical, made even worse by how he got over Coast City’s destruction before losing his mind in “Emerald Twilight.” However, his evolution to Parallax not only gave us one of DC’s best-looking villains, but set up the eventual retcon where Parallax was revealed as the Entity of Fear. This retcon would lead into the ultimate expansion of the Lantern mythos, spawning what might just be the greatest Green Lantern run of all time. Hal’s villainous turn might not have been the most in-character, but it did lay the groundwork for his best story, so I consider that a win.

3) Triumph

Instead of a hero that everyone loved, let’s focus on one that almost nobody liked in the least. Triump emerged at the end of Zero Hour, funnily enough, because of Parallax. He was actually a founding member of the Justice League, but sacrificed himself to a time rift that wiped his memory from the world. When he finally returned, he was ready to use his incomparable magnetic mastery to save the day like nobody but a founding Leaguer could. The only problem is that Triumph tended to be a sanctimonious jerk that nobody liked, meaning that he very quickly faded into obscurity.

After falling on hard times, he turned to making a deal with an evil genie to restore his powers. He tried to force his way back onto the Justice League, but was stopped, turned into a statue, and forgotten to time. Triumph is the perfect example of taking a character that nobody liked and playing into that reaction. By making him a villain, fans had a valid reason to root against him, and they got to see the heroes they actually liked put him in his place. Fans were dying for a reason to cheer against Triumph, and this gave them the opportunity to enjoy his character for the first time, which is exactly what he needed.

2) Captain Atom

Captain Atom is another character that’s always ridden the line between great hero and jerk who people distrust. He has a reputation for either being a government stooge or a generally arrogant guy who always thinks that he knows what’s best for everyone and isn’t afraid to shove it in your face. Despite all that, he has a kind heart and tries to be the best hero he can be, overcoming his self-doubt and personal hardships most of all. However, all of his worst traits blossomed to the surface when he was driven unstable mentally and physically following Infinite Crisis, leading to his transformation into the Monarch.

The thing that makes his time as the crazed, universe-traveling Monarch so interesting is that he was always meant to be the Monarch, but originally wasn’t. He was meant to be the true mastermind of Armageddon 2001, but DC changed it at the last second to combat a leak, leaving a huge hole in his history and character that was meant to be filled, but now felt incomplete. Captain Atom actually assuming his Monarch identity was finally giving justice to the idea he was forced to give up, fulfilling a promise to the character and the fans years in the making.

1) Flash

Barry Allen is one of the most hopeful, caring people in all of DC. He’s a remnant of the Silver Age who never let go of the endless optimism of that era, instead only growing more hopeful as the world darkened around him. Heck, Barry has even served as a Blue Lantern, for crying out loud. Nobody fights for a better tomorrow like the Flash does, which is why his villainous future self’s decision to try to destroy himself in the past during the “Out of Time” arc is so compelling. Barry became a villain, but he never lost his character or his hope.

This Barry was much darker, going out of his way to kill or maim his foes to make sure they couldn’t hurt anyone again, and even planned to kill his past self to heal the Speed Force and accomplish his goal. Yet, he only wanted to save Iris and Wally, and sat with Captain Cold while he died of cancer. This Barry wasn’t evil, just lost. He clung to hope that he could save his loved ones, but went about it in the most destructive way possible. This is exactly what a hero going bad should look like. He was a complex, heroic figure who let his anger and pain get the better of him, leading him to cross lines he never should, even while holding onto everything that made him a hero.

As much as I love when DC’s heroes act like heroes, there’s something special about a good villain arc. What’s your favorite hero-turned-villain story?

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