The X-Men battle some of the best villains in Marvel Comics, and a good number of them are women. Some of them include the most powerful and impactful characters of all time, like Jean Grey as the Dark Phoenix. And like many X-Men characters, the line between good and evil is often not clear at all.

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With the X-Men coming to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, many of these women will certainly be a major part of the new live-action take on the franchise as villains, allies, or perhaps both. Some of them, like the shapeshifter Mystique, could already be active in the MCU in disguise, and fans don't know it yet.

Spiral

Spiral prepares to attack in X-Men comics.

Spiral is one of the most visually interesting villains in the vast stable of X-Men antagonists. Spiral has six arms, all of which are usually wielding a sword or some other type of weapon. She was originally a stuntwoman from Earth who was transformed into an agent of Mojo after being captured on Mojoworld. She's been at the forefront of Mojo's attempts to capture or destroy Longshot and the other X-Men and in more recent years, joined the version of Uncanny X-Force led by Storm and was for a time one of the good guys.

Lady Deathstrike

Lady Deathstrike prepares to attack in Marvel Comics.

Lady Deathstrike is another visually striking villain with long, razor-sharp claws. She is actually a product of the same horrific process that created Spiral, having sought out the same "body shop" to gain enhancements to make her more powerful. Lady Deathstrike has been a major antagonist of Wolverine, fighting him with her adamantium claws on numerous occasions. Like Wolverine, she also has an adamantium-coated skeleton, a process that is actually the product of scientific and medical experimentation pioneered by her father.

Cassandra Nova

Cassandra Nova attacks in Marvel Comics.

Cassandra Nova is one of the most powerful and unexpected villains in X-Men lore. Nova is the "twin" of Charles Xavier, a parasitic lifeform that bonded to him in utero and then formed a body of her own. Cassandra Nova has massive telepathic powers, but also as a mummudrai (a psionic parasite) she is also able to manipulate matter to create organic bodies. Cassandra Nova was created by writer Grant Morrison and artist Frank Quitely during the New X-Men run in the 2000s and last fought against X-Men Red, one of the best X-Men rosters in the comics.

Deathbird

Deathbird in attacks in New Mutants 5 comic book.

Deathbird has been a major cosmic antagonist of the X-Men going back to her first appearance in 1977. Cal'syee Neramani is the sister and rival of Empress Lilandra of the Shi'ar Empire and has on numerous occasions attempted to depose her. The X-Men have been involved in many cases thanks to Xavier's romance with Lilandra.

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Deathbird has more than political ambition going for her. As a genetic mutant of the Shi'ar herself, she has a number of superpowers including super strength, stamina, and agility. Her fingers are also claws, though not nearly as pronounced as Lady Deathstrike's.

Emma Frost

Emma Frost walking into the room as the Stepford Cuckoos stand beside her in Marvel Comics.

It's a murky subject whether or not Emma Frost is still a proper X-Men villain, considering she has been part of the team for most of the 21st century. As a member of the White Council, she's intimately linked to the team's present and future. She started out as one of their greatest villains. The White Queen fought the X-Men with her astounding telepathic abilities as a member of the Hellfire Club, especially during the seminal Dark Phoenix Saga storyline in the '80s. Though she is more a hero these days, she's always looking out for her own interests, keeping her a wild card.

Madelyne Pryor

Goblin Queen commands goblins in Marvel Comics.

Madelyne Pryor is one of the greatest X-Men villains and also one of the most tragic. The wife of Scott Summers and the mother of Nathan, who would become Cable, she was revealed to be a clone of Jean Grey designed by Mr. Sinister. When she became the Goblin Queen, she nearly destroyed the world before being killed in battle against Jean. She has since been resurrected as a clone, but her agency and power remain in question and so do her ambitions. She is a powerful telepath and telekinetic on the same level as Jean Grey.

Dark Phoenix

Jean Grey smiling diabolically as the fallen X-Men lay on the ground.

"The Dark Phoenix Saga" is one of the greatest X-Men storylines ever and features some of the best X-Men issues of the 1980s. Jean Grey was consumed by the Phoenix Force, unleashing truly cosmic power and indulging its need for energy by consuming an entire star, killing billions of aliens. Jean sacrificed her life to prevent the Dark Phoenix from taking any further control of her, but this was later retconned to show that Jean was never actually the Dark Phoenix. Despite this, the shadow of Jean Grey and the Phoenix looms large over the X-Men.

Moira MacTaggert

Moira MacTaggert reads Destiny's diaries in Marvel Comics.

Moira MacTaggert is a longtime X-Men ally and, in the "Dawn Of X" era, the architect of the Krakoan age of mutants. With the revelation that she is in fact a mutant and has lived nine lives before, her motivations have come into question. Her ultimate plan remains a mystery, as does the exact reason she is determined to prevent Destiny and other precognitive mutants from being resurrected.

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While she could have noble intentions, Moira's actions at the moment seem as murky as Emma Frost's or other villains who have since become part of Krakoa, like Magneto. She has the potential to be the savior of mutants, but also perhaps one of their greatest villains.

Scarlet Witch

Scarlet Witch creates House of M reality in Marvel comics.

The Scarlet Witch has been a villain of the X-Men going back to her first appearance in X-Men #4 back in 1964 as part of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. She is also responsible for perhaps the most grievous act ever committed against mutants. With the power to alter reality, Wanda Maximoff simply erased most mutants from existence, an act that has led to a series of massive consequences in the years since. One of them is her murder on Krakoa in the most recent X-Men comics. There are many suspects in the murder of the Scarlet Witch, all of them mutants.

Mystique

Mystique transforming into numerous X-Men including Wolverine in Marvel Comics.

Though Mystique, like Emma Frost, is now part of the larger Krakoan mutant nation, her motives remain opaque. Part of that is because the White Council has so far refused to resurrect her wife, Destiny. This has led to Mystique possibly being behind the murder of the Scarlet Witch, easily accomplished thanks to her shapeshifting powers to impersonate other people. With Mystique possibly looking to burn everything down on Krakoa, it seems she's back to her old ways, even if her hurt and anger are most justified than they've ever been before.

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