Across the decades, Marvel and DC have introduced an uncountable number of characters in their vast array of books and stories. Thanks to jumping over into other media, many of these creations have become household names, but hundreds are left unknown to all but the most diehard fans. With each new year bringing dozens of comics from both publishers, it can be hard to keep up with all the latest editions to both Marvel's and DC’s vast catalogue of heroes and villains.
More often than not, the superheroes get the spotlight as the stars of various books, but every good hero needs a good villain to face off against. Luckily, the past few years have seen just as many powerful, interesting, and just plain bizarre ne'er do wells introduced as saviors. From parodies to celestial forces to alternate versions of characters, we've seen a number of exciting new villains join Marvel and DC comics recently. Not too long ago, we gave you a rundown on some of Marvel’s newest threats, but there’s still plenty to examine from both them and the Distinguished Competition.
Here are 16 Brand New Villains In Marvel And DC Comics You Need To Know About.
16. Red Tool (DC)
Red Tool is one of DC’s newest and funniest inventions. A mercenary with a penchant for using power tools as weapons, he first appeared in last year’s Harley Quinn #26 as a potential love interest. The more interesting aspect of his character, however, comes behind-the-scenes.
Marvel and DC have spent decades using each other as inspiration and throwing jokes at one another in the pages of their comics. Red Tool, also known as Wayne Wilkins, is a not-so-subtle jab at Marvel’s Deadpool. Of course, it’s only fitting as Deadpool himself was a sort of parody of DC’s Deathstroke. Even Deadpool’s civilian identity of Wade Wilson is a play on Deathstroke’s alter-ego Slade Wilson.
Rob Liefeld has never hidden the fact that his maniacal, fourth-wall-breaking anti-hero is a play on DC’s poe-faced mercenary, so it’s no surprise DC didn’t bother to even obscure their parody with the goofy Red Tool.
15. Empirikul (Marvel)
The Empirikul are actually an entire group of villains, all lead by the zealous and maniacal Imperator. The organization and their leader first appeared in 2015’s Doctor Strange #1, the group are an interdimensional threat dead set on destroying all magic in the multiverse. As part of Jason Aaron’s fantastic ‘Last Days of Magic’ arc, the Imperator and the Empirikul allow the writer to greatly expand the mythos of magic in the Marvel universe, not to mention providing Doctor Strange with a set of science-obsessed foes.
While the Sorcerer Supreme has battled plenty of evil magic-users in his long comics history, the Empirkul offers something truly unique, complete with a sympathetic backstory. The story also opens the doors to the current state of Doctor Strange comics and the future of magic in Marvel Comics.
14. Empty Hand and the Gentry (DC)
Leave it to Grant Morrison to flesh out the vast multiversal scope of DC Comics and introduce a frightening and omniscient threat. Morrison has always been known for his heady concepts, and has helped to expand the trippy aspects of both Marvel and DC Comics.
Debuting in 2015’s The Multiversity Guidebook #1, the Empty Hand is a cosmic force of pure destruction that leads the villainous Gentry. Like Empty Hand, the Gentry come from a world outside of the known Multiverse, a place of sheer horror and terror. Their sole mission is to spread the horror they experience, through chaos and destruction.
Both Marvel and DC have long used daunting cosmic threats in their stories, and the Empty Hand and his minions are a perfect addition to that stable.
13. Tenfingers (Marvel)
As fascinating of a character as Tenfingers is, he’s one villain we’ll likely never see join the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Following the events of Secret Wars, the new take on Daredevil in his 2016 book by Charles Soule sees Matt Murdock gain a new partner in Blindspot, and a new villain in Tenfingers and his Church of the Sheltering Hands. True to his name, Tenfingers possesses ten digits on each hand, which seems to give him added power.
In real life, it’d be a great hindrance, as there’s a reason humans evolved with the number of fingers we have. Still, he and his various companions take weird pride in their excess or absent digits and their combat skills make them quite a match for Daredevil and his sidekick.
12. The Kindred (DC)
Like the Empty Hand and the Gentry, the Kindred are a new cosmic force in the world of DC Comics. Following the events of Rebirth that once again rebooted the DC Universe, writer Bryan Hitch introduced the idea of the Kindred as part of his recent run on Justice League. The Kindred are a series of ultra-powerful entities who take the form of various living beings, merging them together into massive humanoid constructs.
Once formed, the Kindred represent four major concepts in DC lore: the Speed Force (which the Flash uses), magic, the Emotional Light Spectrum (employed by the Lanterns), and overall cosmic power. As celestial beings, they wield incredible power, and unfortunately for the Justice League, they decide to use that power for destruction.
11. Mister Misery (Marvel)
Like the Empirikul, Mister Misery was introduced in the same Doctor Strange arc that threatened the existence of magic. But while the Empirikul are the main threat of the story, Mister Misery is one lurking in the shadows. All throughout the story he’s teased as a mysterious presence in the basement of New York's Sanctum Sanctorum, and it’s slowly revealed that he’s the construct of Doctor Strange and a place for him to store all of the suffering he’s failed to endure for using his magic. See, magic has a price, and it’s paid in different ways.
In Scarlet Witch, it manifests as Wanda's soul aging. For Strange, he passes it onto a literal magical being he’s created. It’s a fascinatingly dark concept, and one that could have ramifications for years to come.
10. Grail (DC)
While Geoff Johns currently oversees both DC Comics and the growing DCEU films, he’s first and foremost a comic writer. And whether because of or despite his current position, he’s best known for introducing some major concepts to the comics.
As part of Johns’ run on Justice League in 2015, Grail was introduced as the daughter of Darkseid and the latest threat to Earth from the world of Apokolips. Like many new characters, she was retconned in, with her birth coinciding with Wonder Woman's. Kept a secret for generations while being trained, Grail is part Amazonian thanks to her mother Myrina.
All told, she possesses incredible power, from the corruption of will to strength and durability. She can even summon her father on command, making her a powerful new threat to the League.
9. Countess (Marvel)
The Countess is the perfect villain for Kelly Thompson’s A-Force book as she represents a strong female character, has the echoes of Battleworld, and is impeccably designed. Following the chaos of Secret Wars, a number of characters were rebooted, unaware of what went down in Battleworld. A few stories, however, have actually dealt with the fallout.
Growing out of the title of the same name from Secret Wars, A-Force reunites some of Marvel’s most powerful women as they take on a threat from a dead dimension. The Countess is not only all powerful and can turn into a cool dragon (not cool for our heroes, of course), but represents the brutal nature of Battleworld and her home Killville. While she’s ultimately vanquished, her design alone would be welcome back anytime in the future.
8. Eradicator II (DC)
Throughout DC’s Rebirth, we’ve seen a number of old concepts made new again, though some with hardly any changes. At the center of many of the changes has been DC’s biggest character, Superman. The changes made to the universe have seen a number of his former friends and foes brought back to life, and the Eradicator is shaping up to be a key factor in future stories.
Eradicator II is more or less the rebooted version of the Eradicator from the late '80s. The first Eradicator was an ancient cybernetic being bent on eradicating anything that interfered with its perfect idea of Kryptonian culture. In its most common form, it basically looks like Superman with some giant yellow sunglasses.
Despite its ‘90s-centric look, the new version of the Eradicator who debuted in Superman #2 last year has the same appearance. This version, however, is part of a group of robotic guards under the employ of General Zod designed to fight crime on Krypton. From there, things go predictably wrong.
7. Hala (Marvel)
Hala is another remnant of Battleworld, but she’s a bit different from the Countess. During Secret Wars, the villain debuted Guardians of Knowhere #3 alongside alien bruiser Yotat. Not only did she and Yotat plague the Guardians in the Secret Wars universe, but they both made the jump to the new one.
In the current reality, Hala’s one of the few remaining Kree, named after the race’s destroyed homeworld. She’s also the last living member of the Accusers and wields a powerful staff that no one else can lift. Her power is substantial, as she fights off the core Guardians along with the Thing, Venom, and Kitty Pryde, but Yotat’s interference leads to her downfall. The Guardians are just barely able to defeat her, and Hala flees to fight another day.
6. Oblivion (DC)
There have been a few characters who have used the name Oblivion in DC Comics history, but the most recent came in 2014’s Green Lantern: New Guardians Annual #2. Looking like a cross between a Black Lantern and Marvel’s Venom, Oblivion is a corrupted version of Green Lantern Kyle Rayner. When Rayner tweaked the Source, a concept connected to the New Gods and said to be the fount of all life and energy in the universe, he left behind a being composed of all of his negative traits and emotions.
After a fight between Rayner and Oblivion, the Lantern chose to reabsorb the force, correcting his mistake and seemingly ending the threat. Given this is comics, however, we wouldn’t be surprised if Oblivion somehow reappears.
5. Siphon (Marvel)
Siphon is both an intensely frightening creature and a fascinating new concept in the Marvel Universe. Introduced in Death of Wolverine: The Logan Legacy #7 in 2015, Siphon is one of the latest in a long line of experiments done by the Weapon X program.
Once a humble teacher, the creature that became known as Siphon is a sort of energy vampire, whose thirst can only be quenched by the life force of those with healing factors. This unending desire puts him in the crosshairs of the Wolverines, a team composed of various individuals tied to Wolverine over the years and all possessing regenerative powers. The conflict leads to an amazing team-up between X-23 and Daken, and Lady Deathstrike eventually kills Siphon mere months after his first appearance. That said, he’s too cool of a concept not to be re-explored in some manner.
4. Four Furies of Apokolips (DC)
While Marvel has used the Biblical idea of the Four Horseman of the Apocalypse for years as a pun on the mutant Apocalypse, it took DC until 2014 to do the same. In their case, the Apocalypse in question is the planet Apokolips, home to New God and eternal Justice League villain Darkseid.
The Four Furies of Apokolips are a female group of beings representing War, Famine, Pestilence, and Death, and are a play on the Apokoliptian villains the Female Furies. Introduced in Earth 2: World’s End #1, they battle against the alternate version of the Justice League and wreak all sorts of havoc on their world. Death even sires a beastly child named Deathspawn with Darkseid.
In the end, all of the Furies are killed in World’s End #17 except War, left powerless and brooding on her next attempt at conquest.
3. Regent (Marvel)
Throughout the history of Marvel Comics, a few more obscure characters have held the name Regent. The newest and most deadly character to assume the mantle is Augustus Roman. Introduced during Secret Wars as part of Renew Your Vows, Regent is an interesting take on a Spider-Man villain. Though he’s not connected to his pre-Secret Wars version, the character proved popular enough to debut in the new reality in 2015’s Amazing Spider-Man #1.
By day, Roman is an industrialist who owns a supervillain prison called the Cellar. Secretly, however, he despises superhumans due to a battle between them killing his family as a child. Using the Cellar, he actually drains the powers of villains and loads them into a specialized suit, giving himself untold power.
2. Godspeed (DC)
Godspeed is essentially DC’s speedster version of the Punisher, acting more as an anti-hero than a villain. Still, his brutal and deadly approach to fighting crime has made him an enemy of both Barry Allen and Wally West.
Debuting in The Flash: Rebirth #1, August Heart is paired up with Barry at the Central City Police Department when the latter is granted his powers. Eventually, he undergoes his own Speed Force lightning strike, giving him the power to stop the criminal group he blames for his brother’s death. Like most of Barry’s speedster foes, he possesses the full gamut of Speed Force powers. He also has the added ability of being able to create Speed Force clones of himself, added another threat level to the powerful rogue.
1. Cindy Moon of Earth-65 (Marvel)
In Marvel’s main universe, dubbed Earth-616, Cindy Moon is like Godspeed to Peter Parker— only she’s much more heroic. Present during Peter’s infamous spider bite, Cindy too gets the same treatment. Instead of becoming a superhero, however, she’s locked away in a bunker for a decade to hide her from the villainous Inheritors. Once she’s out, she becomes the heroic Silk, but things could have gone differently.
On Earth-65, Cindy Moon killed the radioactive spider before it bit her and went on to join S.H.I.E.L.D. Eventually, she rebelled and formed S.I.L.K., a super-terrorist organization. She’d then go on to create the spider that would turn Gwen Stacy into Spider-Woman and later became the hero's latest villain when she battled Gwen, Silk, and Jessica Drew during last year’s Spider-Women event.
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Which new DC and Marvel villains are your favorite? Any we missed? Let us know in the comments.