While Marvel may be best known for its egocentric billionaires, its super soldiers from World War II, and its web slinging photographers, it is also home to quite a bit of royalty.
Whether they're from Wakanda, Latveria, Attilan, or even Asgard, there are plenty of kings and queens in the Marvel Universe who regularly take the spotlight.
While the regular superheroes are always interesting, the political turmoil of the royal characters create a bit of a tonal change for the comics and the movies that help to keep people entertained.
Sometimes, it's fun to take a break from superheroes fighting the Masters of Evil in order to learn more about the royal lineage issues of Asgard or Wakanda, or the secrecy of the kingdoms of Atlantis or Attilan.
However, considering that each kingdom within Marvel is drastically different from one another, not all members of the royal families are equal in strength or power.
Some kings and queens of the same kingdom are not at the same power level, while the overall power of specific kingdoms tend to be more powerful than other kingdoms, which reflects on the power level on the royalty themselves.
With that in mind, here are The 15 Most Powerful Kings And Queens In The Marvel Universe, Officially Ranked.
Star-Lord
Peter Quill is a hero best known for leading the intergalactic mercenary group the Guardians of the Galaxy, but what many people did not realize is that in the comics, he briefly became a king.
Quill's royalty actually was an inheritance from his father in the comics. Unlike in the movies, Peter Quill's father was the King of Spartax, J'son.
During one point in the comics, Star-Lord actually left the Guardians of the Galaxy to take up the mantle of king, with Rocket taking over as the leader of the Guardians. Understandably, the power of being the King went to his head, leading him to turn his back on everyone he loved, including his fiance Kitty Pride.
While Quill certainly got into the mental vibe of being a king in terms of egotism and arrogance, he honestly wasn't the best leader. Eventually, Spartax was invaded by Hala the Accuser, who kidnapped him and the Guardians of the Galaxy.
Spartax was left vulnerable after this point, leading it to be attacked by other enemies. While Quill did manage to stop the invaders with the help of the other Guardians, the people of Spartax no longer had any respect for Quill as a King, leading to him running away from the responsibility.
Shuri
While Shuri became a hit character in the movie Black Panther, she wasn't as prominent or beloved of a hero in the comics, and certainly wasn't as great of a leader as her older brother T'Challa.
When Shuri did take up the mantle of Queen of Wakanda in the comics, she really didn't live up to the legendary position.
Rather than taking new leaps and expanding the reach of the country, Shuri just did everything the way T'Challa would have.
While this worked well, considering how great of a leader T'Challa is in both the movies and comics, it really didn't prove her to be a great or powerful leader.
Hypothetically, if Shuri were to become the Queen of Wakanda in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, she would be a much better Queen than she was in the comics. The movie version of Shuri is a lot more in-depth and innovative than her comic book counterpart, and even tends to question her brother at times.
Because of this different, more innovative version of Shuri in the movies, it's quite possible that the MCU version of Shuri would be put a lot higher on this list if she should ever become Queen.
Kang The Conqueror
As a time traveler, the Marvel villain Kang the Conqueror has conquered a number of different civilizations during different eras of the Universe. Because of this, Kang has become King Kang of a few different kingdoms throughout space and time.
At one point, Kang traveled back several centuries in order to face off against King Arthur and his men, who he easily defeated. Because of this, Kang became the King of Camelot. However, his greatest political accomplishment is likely one that technically won't take place for another two thousand years.
During the 40th century, Kang actually managed to become the King of Earth, which is obviously an enormous accomplishment.
Unfortunately, this royal position was short lived, as he was soon taken out of power by the Avengers, who also used time travel in an understandably confusing event.
While Kang never really held a position of power for too long (even though he kind of did, depending on how you look at his time travelling escapades), he is still a certainly powerful leader.
Kang's entire purpose in life is to conquer and rule all of history, and he's done a fairly good job of that throughout his appearances in the comics.
Storm
While Ororo Munroe / Storm is not necessarily known for being royalty, and is instead best known for being one of the most prominent members of the X-Men, she was at one point the Queen of Wakanda.
She and T'Challa / Black Panther fell in love and got married in the comics, which actually made Ororo the rightful Queen of Wakanda.
While Storm didn't necessarily achieve much personally as Queen, she did become a strong influence for the rest of the world. After the royal Wakandan wedding, Professor Xavier told Storm that her marriage made her the most important mutant in the world.
By becoming a public figure, Xavier described Ororo as the "living symbol of human-mutant relations."
As the Wakandan Queen, Storm ended up doing a lot with public relations, not just with mutants, but of all people. While she and T'Challa didn't fight in the Civil War in the comics, she did convince her husband to have Wakanda take a stand against the Superhuman Registration Act.
All in all, Ororo was a great Queen of Wakanda during the time that she and T'Challa were married. She helped many people in the world, and did not take her position of power for granted.
Vulcan
Gabriel Summers / Vulcan is the lesser known of the three Summers brothers. Unlike Cyclops and Havok, Vulcan chose a darker path. He went on to become an intergalactic villain who became an occasional antagonist against the X-Men.
He eventually took control of the Shi'ar Empire, which made him more than a King, and instead an Emperor. While most of the people of Earth are unaware of the existence of Shi'ar in the comics, those who do know about it know that it is certainly a powerful force.
Not only was Vulcan powerful thanks to the impressive armies and weaponry of the Shi'ar Empire, but as a mutant, he is almost unstoppable.
While his physical strength is only slightly above average, his energy projection abilities are truly off the charts. His energy abilities are even higher than his brothers Havok and Cyclops, who are already considered some of the more powerful members of the X-Men.
At times, Vulcan has been described as an Omega level mutant, making him into a truly viable threat against the X-Men and other heroes.
Though he may no longer be the Emperor of Shi'ar, he still stands strong on this list due to his impressive power level.
Loki
Loki Laufeyson is one of the greatest villains, both in the comics and the villains. As a god, he is incredibly powerful, and his deceptive ways truly make him a force to not trifle with. Because of this, Loki certainly deserves his spot on this list.
The reason why Loki is not higher on the list is because, in the comics at least, he never really became a king for too long.
Despite being the rightful King of Jotunheim, and managing to steal the throne of Asgard on a number of occasions, Loki's ambitions have kept him from becoming a truly great King.
It's ironic that his ambitions keep him from appreciating the one thing in the world he wants the most: positions of power.
This side of Loki is even prevalent during the movies. In Thor: Ragnarok, Thor finds that Loki had been disguising himself as Odin for years, ruling Asgard as King for quite some time.
However, instead of actually taking the time to be a good leader, Loki focused on stroking his own ego with plays and statues.
During that time, the nine realms fell into chaos as his leadership, even under the guise of Odin, was truly inadequate.
Namor
One member of royalty who has a long history in Marvel comics is Namor, the King of Atlantis who inspired the popular DC character Aquaman.
On his own, Namor is already an incredibly powerful character, often described as an alpha level mutant. His genes are a mix between the Atlantean gene and the mutant gene, which help to make him more powerful than almost anyone else in Atlantis.
With the powers of Atlantis on his side, Namor is incredibly powerful. He's a great leader to his people, which makes him well respected and easy to follow.
Because of his charismatic leadership abilities in Atlantis, most of his warriors are willing to do anything to fight for him, making their combined forces practically unstoppable.
Unfortunately, Namor tends to seclude himself within Atlantis for the most part. Due to this, Namor does not have too grand of an impact on the rest of the world.
He and his armies rarely ever fight alongside any other Marvel heroes or villains, with Civil War being one of his few outings alongside his army. Had Namor had a greater impact on the rest of the world, he would undoubtedly be higher up on this list.
Medusa
Among the different characters in the Inhumans comics, Medusa is certainly one of the most well known. This Queen of Attilan had a profound effect on all of her people, being one of the most powerful members of the civilization's political spectrum.
Much of Medusa's work was done in outreach programs to Earth. After Earth's discovery of Attilan, Medusa dealt with most of the relations between the two civilizations to make sure that there was a mutual respect between the different governments.
Medusa's work on Earth combined with her respect in Attilan itself makes her into a truly great Queen. Additionally, her personal power adds to her overall strength.
After all, a Queen with magic, crazy powerful hair is certainly not a Queen you would want to mess with.
Unfortunately, Medusa is not the most fond of her leadership position. She is only part of the Attilan Royal Family through marriage, and originally had much different plans for her career during her early years.
All in all, while Medusa may not be as powerful as Blackbolt, she is still one of the greatest leaders in Attilan, and overall one of the greatest members of royalty in all of Marvel comics.
Hulk
When people think of the Hulk, they typically think of him as a giant, green monster who can't help but destroy everything in sight. However, at one point in the comics, Hulk actually became the King of an entire planet.
During the comic arc Planet Hulk, which was partially adapted in Thor: Ragnarok, Hulk was a gladiator on the Planet Sakaar.
However, Hulk soon formed a coup among the other gladiators and overthrew the current government, making himself into the King of the planet.
Hulk is one of Marvel's most powerful characters, which certainly makes him a deserving addition to this list. Unfortunately, the one thing keeping Hulk from being higher on this list is the fact that Hulk was easily fooled and defeated by one of his closest followers on Sakaar, Miek.
During the events of World War Hulk, Miek caused an explosion that took the lives of Hulk's wife and kids on Sakaar, and pinned it on the Illuminati, hoping to bring back Hulk's rage and pure strength.
Because of this, his rule of Sakaar was short lived, as Hulk quickly gave up his siege on Earth after discovering the truth about Miek's plan. Hulk surrendered, and never returned to his kingdom on Sakaar again.
Black Bolt
Black Bolt is not only an incredible King, but he's one of Marvel's most powerful characters overall. Though he can't talk, his true power is displayed in his energy blasts that protrude from his mouth, making him a force that very few actually want to mess with, let alone overthrow.
Like Medusa, Black Bolt is fairly well respected among the residents of Attilan, making him into one of the greatest leaders in all of Marvel Comics. His pure strength and political prowess make him into a truly powerful force in the political spectrum of Marvel.
Not only is Black Bolt well respected among the citizens of Attilan, but since the discovery of Attilan on Earth, he has become a well respected leader among the other characters in Marvel Comics. He regularly tries to make sure that the people of Earth know that he is not a threat, and instead an ally.
Since the Inhumans became significantly more popular in Marvel Comics over the past decade, Black Bolt has become an incredibly interesting character to follow.
It is rather unfortunate that the MCU version of the character has not been as interesting, with his series being abruptly cancelled after only one season.
Doctor Doom
Of all of Marvel's villains, there is likely no villain as grand as Victor Von Doom, the sworn enemy of the Fantastic Four and king of Latveria, a small yet powerful country in Europe.
While the movies mostly show Doctor Doom is a simple, evil villain, the comics themselves go deeper into his true motives and deep character.
Doctor Doom has actually gone further than just being a Latverian King in the comics. At one point, he actually became Emperor of the Earth after taking control of the entire United Nations.
This is a feat that very few Marvel villains have been able to achieve in the past, and he may be the only Marvel villain to do this during this modern day.
The Doctor Doom movie that is currently being developed at 20th Century FOX will actually focus more on the political side of the Marvel villain, with the screenwriter describing it as a political thriller, rather than just being a regular superhero movie.
Unfortunately, if the Disney / FOX deal does go through, it would most likely cancel all plans for this movie.
Hopefully a future version of Doctor Doom in the movies actually shows the true version of the villain that made him so great in the comics.
Jane Foster
When someone hears the name Thor, they typically think of Chris Hemsworth's character. However, up until recently in the comics, the mantle and power of Thor has been held on the female hero Jane Foster, who actually did a great job as the rightful Queen of Asgard.
Shortly after Jane was diagnosed with cancer, she was granted the full power and responsibilities of Thor, after Thor Odinson himself was deemed unworthy.
While she only held this mantle for a few years in the comics, her time as the new goddess of thunder was incredible, with her never taking her gifts for granted.
Jane managed to take on a number of powerful foes during her time in power, even defeating Doctor Doom. While she never took much time to sit on the throne of Asgard, she did prove herself to be a worthy receiver of the royal Odinson power.
Unfortunately, we did not get the best chance to see Jane Foster as Thor, as her cancer did eventually return when she briefly lost her powers, taking her life.
Had Jane Foster lived longer in the comics, she surely would have had a number of more chances to show her power and nobility, and likely would have placed higher on this list.
Odin
Of all of the Kings in Marvel Comics, Odin is most likely the most revered and respected. In other religions outside of Norse, Odin was similar to other leading gods like Zeus and Jupiter. Because of this, he undoubtedly deserves his place on this list.
The one factor keeping Odin from being placed at the top of this list is the fact that we never really got to see Odin in full power during the comics or movies.
All of the comics of Odin featured him in his older age where he is retired in battle and forgotten by the people of Earth.
All that is powerful and revered about Odin during his time in the comics is the legends about him, and the respect his people have for him. Outside of this, Odin is just a standard king who seemingly does the bare minimum with no interest in expanding the reach of his power.
Honestly, it would be nice to see more of Odin, especially in the movies.
Thor: Ragnarok teased a time when Odin would go from realm to realm conquering the land and taking them as his own, which is certainly a lot more interesting than the version of Odin that we ended up seeing in the movies.
Black Panther
T'Challa, the King of Wakanda, is undoubtedly the greatest King on Earth in Marvel comics. Both in the movies and in the comics, T'Challa is a truly remarkable leader, combining the ideals of the past with true open mindedness of the future and the needs of his people.
Not only is he great from this political viewpoint, but he is also incredibly powerful in terms of strength.
With the combined powers of his strength from the god Bast and the indestructible abilities of Vibranium, Black Panther is one of the strongest fighters in all of Marvel Comics who poses a true threat to almost every one he faces against, both hero and villain alike.
Black Panther manages to be well respected by the people of Wakanda and the rest of the people of Earth, with his work in other countries having a great impact on millions of people.
The events of Black Panther in the MCU are certainly exciting for the future of the franchise, as it will be certainly exciting to see where the franchise takes T'Challa going forward.
In the comics, he is a truly phenomenal leader, and it's likely that this will continue to play out in the future of the movies.
Thor
Finally, we have the greatest King in all of Marvel Comics: Thor Odinson. Unlike his brother Loki, Thor truly cares for the people of Asgard and the other eight realms, and sacrifices his well being time and time again for the people he is sworn to protect.
Furthermore, Thor is incredibly powerful on his own. As Avengers: Infinity War proved to a number of Marvel fans, Thor's power level is truly off the charts, with his full power being truly something remarkable that is enough to keep almost any villain away.
Almost everyone in the Marvel Universe has some sort of respect for Thor, including those in Asgard, on Earth, and even those scattered around the galaxy. This respect comes both from his incredible power and from his incredible leadership style.
Thor doesn't need time travel to be powerful like Kang the Conqueror does, and the movies proved that he doesn't even need his hammer to be a truly great and respectable king.
All in all, Thor's journey throughout Marvel Comics has been incredible, making him into one of the most interesting characters, in addition to being the most prominent and powerful member of royalty that the comic book company has ever put out.
---
Can you think of any other Marvel kings or queens who are extremely powerful? Sound off in the comments!