Superheroes often represent the best parts of humanity and are constantly putting themselves in danger to protect the people of this planet. You know, those who aren’t faster than a speeding bullet or impervious to bullets, which accounts for most of us.
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While those are traits and choices to be admired, that doesn’t mean they are necessarily the best choice when it comes to ruling over the populace, and on more than one occasion it’s been shown that they can take things to an extreme degree in their pursuit of justice or utopia.
Their efforts typically originate from decent intentions, but their execution is far from decent, and many times can result in countless deaths, rampant fear, and police state like existences.
Without further ado, here are the top 5 worst heroes turned rulers of the comics universe.
The Hulk (Future Imperfect)
Society has always been frightened of what the hulk can do, even at his most popular. If there was a moment in time that showed why that fear is understandable, it was when Bruce Banner met Maestro.
In the Future Imperfect storyline, Hulk ended up in an alternate timeline, where he was introduced to a world devoid of heroes like Captain America, Iron Man, and Spider-Man.
The unfortunateย part of that is Maestro is actually Bruce, just an alternate version who went mad from extensive exposure to radiation.ย His rage was then channeled into taking out all who opposed him, and that happened to be every would-be hero of the Marvel Universe. He then claimed himself ruler of this sad world and called himself Maestro.
The Hulk was able to fix things in the end, but he shouldn’t be surprised if people are a bit afraid of what he’s capable of.
Superman (Injustice)
It’s easy to understand why someone hits their breaking point, but that doesn’t mean they should then leap into a leadership role.
That’s what happened in the world of Injustice, however, when The Joker set his sights on the Man of Steel, and specifically his loved ones. The Joker is able to manipulate Superman into thinking he’s battling Doomsday, but it turns out to be Lois, who is currently pregnant with his child. The two don’t survive the encounter, and Superman flies into a rage, killing the Joker. He then sets out to rule the earth with an iron fist.
Unfortunately, he takes his quest for justice extremely too far and basically ends up running a police state. Not only that, heroes who don’t side with him are branded traitors, and are either turned, imprisoned, or killed outright.
It took Batman assembling a team of rebel heroes, including the Superman from our universe, to overthrow him and set things right. It’s safe to say that it was far from a successful reign, and no one is looking to have the Man of Steel serve another term.
Daredevil (Shadowland)
There’s a saying that the best way to take down something is from within, and that may be the case in some situations. When it involves ancient evils, warring underworld organizations, and the supernatural, maybe it’s best to approach things in a different way.
That was the case in Shadowland, a miniseries that ran in the Daredevil books back in 2010. Matt Murdock was given the opportunity to take control of The Hand, with intention of turning it into a force for good, and a more efficient way to protectย Hell’s Kitchen.
Thingsย did not go according to plan, however, and thanks to an ancient possessing spirit, Murdock slowly turned more vengeful and aggressive, ultimately killing his longtime nemesisย Bullseye. When heroes like Spider-Man, Luke Cage, Moon Knight, and Iron Fist voiced their concerns in regards to his actions, it wasn’t long before he turned his vengeance towards them and anyone who disagreed with his method of leadership.
It was quite some time before Murdock was invited back to the superhero Christmas party.
Justice Lords (Justice League)
The Justice League typically stands for all that’s good in the DC Universe. Superpowered beings, Kings, and Amazons standing together to defend the earth from outside threats. When the place you’ve been protecting decides to elect one of your greatest villains as its leader, it’s not unexpected for there to be some turmoil.
Unfortunately for us, turmoil was the best case scenario, but insteadย Luthor incites a near nuclear war while he’s in office and ends up killing that universe’s Flash in the Justice League animated series arc titled ‘A Better World”. As a result, the league attempts to take him down at the White House, but after telling Supermanย to his face that no matter how many times he puts him in jail he’ll always find a way back, Superman incinerates him with his heat vision.
It’s easy to see what happens next. Superman and the rest of the league then take control of the government, imposing their view of justice on the planet they’ve long defended.
They’re ultimately thwarted by our universe’s Justice League, thanks in part to The Flash, but it is a grim reminder of how things can quickly go south when you’re dealing with people this powerful.
Thor (The Reigning)
In Thor: The Reigning, we have arguably the best attempt at ruling in this list, but the way Thor gets there is messy and causes the deaths of thousands. Not a great start to your legacy by any means.
First, let’s start with what gets Thor in trouble in the first place. Thor moves Asgard over New York City, as in literally moves it. There are few in this world who would be content knowing that an ancient city is hovering over top of them, and the governments of earth feel the same way.
This consortium of nations attempts to invade Asgard, and the ensuing battle results in the destruction of the city and countlessย deaths of both Asgardians and humans. Thor is never one to back down from a fight, but in doing so kills his mortal form, becoming unworthy of his hammer Mjolnir.
Okay, bad start, but Thor ultimately goes on to create a new Asgard in New York, and actually successful creates a utopian society. Sickness is almostย eradicated, no one is starving, and the divides between humanity have been broken down. It looks and sounds amazing, but as anyone who’s been in a leadership position before knows, you can’t force your ways upon a civilization for very long, and his utopian kingdom starts to crumble from within, led by a group of rebels including Scarlett Witch and Captain America who oppose his ruling status.
