Superman is the ideal superhero and one of the most iconic members of the Justice League. Sent to Earth by his birth parents due to the imminent collapse of the planet Krypton, Kal-El was raised by Jonathan and Martha Kent as Clark Kent. The last son of Krypton learned to love the home planet of his adoptive parents and regularly defended its people from everything from petty criminals to intergalactic warlords. Unfortunately, even though he’s been keeping Metropolis and Earth safe for years, not everyone is a fan of the Man of Steel. In fact, many would prefer to see him dead. Let’s take a look at some of the best Superman villains ever introduced in the DC universe.
12. Conduit
Conduit was a former classmate of Clark Kent’s known as Kenny Braverman. When Braverman was born, he was exposed to Kryptonite, which would affect him for the rest of his life. When Clark and Kenny got to high school, they constantly competed with each other, but Kenny always came in second place. Clark’s constant success earned Kenny belittlement from his father, and when he concluded high school, he swore vengeance against Clark.
Kenny would join the CIA, who experimented on him after learning Kryptonite’s effects on him, and later found Pipeline. Eventually, he took on the name Conduit and attempted to take on his former classmate several times.
Conduit eventually learned the truth about Superman and tried to destroy everything he held dear. However, during the final battle between the two, Kenny’s quest gets the better of him, and he overloads, though he continues to blame Clark for everything that happened to him.
11. Metallo
“I sacrificed everything to become a hero. You were born with it. When have you ever had to sacrifice everything? That doesn’t make you a hero. It just makes you lucky.” – Metallo
Every DC fan knows that if you want a chance to take on the Man of Steel, you will need Kryptonite. Metallo took this a little too seriously and now has Kryptonite on his person at all times. Before he became a villain, Metallo was known as John Corben, a journalist working at the Daily Planet bearing a strong resemblance to Superman (besides a moustache). His sister passed away while working in Metropolis, and he blames the red-caped hero for it.
Shortly after he joined the Daily Planet, Corben was run over by a truck and later found by a mad scientist who decided to experiment on him and rebuild his body using numerous mechanical parts. He was given an artificial heart, which ran on highly radioactive substances. Kryptonite proved to be the only substance that his heart didn’t consume in a matter of hours.
After discovering that he had gained super strength and several other abilities thanks to his mechanical parts, he decided to see what happened to him as a gift and use his newfound powers to exact his revenge on Superman. His Kryptonite heart has proven effective against Superman and General Zod.
Metallo has proven strong enough to duel Superman on numerous occasions thanks to his strength, regenerative abilities, superhuman stamina and Kryptonite heart. But, unfortunately, his downfall is usually caused by his plans backfiring on him.
10. Parasite
“I am as you say… A Parasite! And you are only food to me! I have become you! Who you are, what you are, how you came to be– All this is mine!” – Parasite
There have been several versions of the character, but they all have a very similar origin story. A low-level worker in a lab accidentally exposes himself to radioactive material that morphs him into the vampiric villain, Parasite.
Parasite feeds on the life force of those he touches, draining mortals and absorbing the powers and memories of more powerful beings. His abilities make him highly dangerous, especially when combatting characters on the same level as Superman. Because Parasite can maintain the memories of his more powerful hosts, he is one of the few characters in DC aware of Superman’s secret identity.
The most prominent version of the character was Rudy Jones, who was last seen by General Sam Lane, Lois Lane’s father, in a holding cell at LexCorp tower. However, Raymond Jensen is one of the saddest versions of Superman’s formidable foe. The first version of the character had an element of pathos because he found himself unable to touch his wife and family without fear of harming them.
9. Bizzaro
“Me am not monster! Me am not Superman… me am… Bizarro!” – Bizarro
Bizzaro was the imperfect duplicate of Superman and, since his first appearance, has been a consistent enemy of Superman. Bizzaro is Superman’s absolute opposite and even talks in backward sentences that mean the opposite of what he says.
His powers are just Superman’s reversed: flame breath, ice vision, X-ray vision (but only through lead) and microscopic vision (which increased the size of things) are just some examples.
It was eventually understood that Bizzaro never really meant any harm and usually did what he could to emulate Superman. However, his heroic attempts were usually destructive and clumsy, and his Bizzaro logic caused him to be evil.
He’s become an anti-hero and a member of the Outlaws alongside Red Hood and Artemis. The original Bizarro was twisted but intelligent and often created strange inventions and devices. His clone was mindless and instinctive.
Bizzaro passed away while trying to become the perfect imperfect Superman. He blew up Bizarro World, arrived on Earth as an adult, went on a rampage and passed away holding a piece of Blue Kryptonite, all so that he could be the true opposite of Superman.
Bizarro is one of the best and certainly one of the strangest Superman villains of all time.
8. Rogol Zaar
Created by Jor-El (the biological father of Kal-El) and unleashed into the galaxy, Rogol Zaar was a humanoid behemoth that served as a mercenary for The Circle, a group of prominent galactic leaders to which he belonged.
Rogol Zaar was responsible for destroying Krypton and Empress Gandelo of the Trilium Collective. After destroying Krypton, he travelled the galaxy, searching for any surviving Kryptonians and defeating them. This was part of the reason why he broke into the Fortress of Solitude and destroyed the Bottle City of Kandor.
It took the combined strength and skills of Superman and Supergirl to banish him to the Phantom Zone. Zaar has an irrational hatred which he uses against his opponents. However, he is almost entirely invulnerable, as he can only be injured by characters like Superman.
7. Mr. Mxyzptlk
Mxyzptlk is one of the goofier villains in Superman’s Rogues Gallery, but he has still made regular appearances in comic books and different animated series. He’s an imp from the 5th dimension who isn’t bound by the laws of physics and uses his cartoonlike abilities to perform a great number of dangerous pranks.
When Mister Mxyzptlk first arrived, he had plans for world domination. Still, after shattering the Man of Tomorrow’s perception of himself, the villain decided he much preferred tormenting Superman at every given opportunity. Fortunately for Clark, Mxyzptlk is exceptionally gullible and can be returned to his home dimension if tricked into saying or spelling his name backwards.
While Mxyzptlk is considered more of a joke villain, he still manages to be one of Superman’s best villains.
6. Mongul
“I wish there was some way of reasoning or negotiating with him. But there isn’t. None. He lives to conquer. There is nothing else to him. There’s nothing to explain. There is no way to confront him! There’s no other language he understands” – Superman
Mongul was once the despotic ruler of an alien world. Finally, the citizens of his planet decided they’d had enough and exiled him to space after rebelling against him. Not one to be deterred by one world getting rid of him, he travelled through space trying to conquer worlds until he happened upon War World. There he ruled without question or challenge and forced the planet’s inhabitants into gladiatorial combat for his own enjoyment.
Eventually, he turned to Earth and tried to turn it into another War World. Fortunately, Superman and an army of heroes quickly defeated Mongul and saved Earth.
The current Mongul (the original Mongul’s son) is an enemy of the Green Lantern Corps and a member of the Sinestro Corps. He rose through the ranks and challenged and defeated Sinestro, who lost control of his army. Eventually, the Yellow Lantern claimed his army back, and Mongul returned to War World. Superman has been on a quest to end his reign of terror in the latest arc of Action comics.
The original version of the character was cunning and ruthless, with a strength that rivalled Superman. He often used trickery and treachery against his enemies. He was instrumental in causing Hal Jordan’s eventual fall from grace, which started with the destruction of Coast City.
Mogul is definitely one of the best Superman villains and certainly one of the most underrated.
5. Brainiac
“I will be everything there has ever been, Kryptonian. I will be evolved into perfection.” – Brainiac
Brainiac was one of Superman’s greatest enemies besides Lex Luthor. Known initially as Vril Dox, the villain is a green-skinned alien from the planet Colu. Depending on his origin, he was either a Coluan man or an android hailing from Colu. His greatest crime was abducting the city of Kandor by shrinking it before the collapse of Krypton.
During his first appearance, Brainiac was the last surviving member of his planet who arrived on Earth with plans to take several cities and use them to replenish his world. Fortunately, Superman was able to defeat him and restore the stolen human cities. But, unfortunately, the regrowing ray broke before Kandor was restored to its proper size.
Brianiac’s habit of collecting different cities caused him to become known as the Collector of Worlds. He often teamed up with Lex Luthor against Superman, though the two regularly double-crossed eachother. He also gave Zor-El (Jor-El’s brother) a cybernetic body, hoping the Kryptonian would be an adequate replacement for the deceased genius.
4. General Zod
“I promise you this: I… will always… be your monster.” – General Zod
Dru-Zod is a disgraced Kryptonian military leader imprisoned in the Phantom Zone after trying to lead an insurrection. He was once great friends with Jor-El, but the recent depictions of the character show that he has a grievance with the House of El.
He had almost no respect for the Kryptonian Council and survived Krypton’s collapse only because he was in the Phantom Zone at the time. He is the current leader of New Krypton’s military and is a frequent enemy of Superman, having tried to take over Earth prior to the creation of New Krypton.
General Zod is a cold, ruthless and determined individual who is served unquestionably by his two allies who are currently known as Ursa and Non. Thanks to his past as a general, he is much stronger and more skilled in combat than Superman.
Zod is definitely one of the best Superman villains of all time.
3. Doomsday
“Most predators attack their attackers… but this beast… it destroyed everything. That was its function, after all… to ensure that no Kryptonian would ever be safe again.” – General Zod
Doomsday is a mindless, rampaging monster first introduced in The Death of Superman storyline. He is a result of Kryptonian genetic engineering gone wrong. He went on a rampage during his first appearance, destroying everything and everyone he saw. No one knew his motives; they only knew he was immensely powerful and unstoppable.
He took on the entire Justice League before finally confronting Superman and has been one of the only characters in the main DC continuity that managed to defeat Superman. Since then, the two have clashed heads on numerous occasions.
He has an invulnerability that rivals that of Kryptonians, and though he is a biological Kryptonian, his powers do not work the same as a regular Kryptonian. Superman gained his powers through the Photonucleic Effect, thanks to his many years of exposure to Earth’s young yellow sun. However, Doomsday gained strength and resilience from his numerous incidences. Every time Doomsday is defeated or is injured, he comes back stronger than before and is much harder to defeat than the last time.
As an infant, Doomsday perished many times, causing him to despise his creator for the immense pain he put him through.
Fans saw the character come to life on the big screen in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.
2. Lex Luthor
“So instead of walking into the unknown… I didn’t do anything. […] I never again let the fear of failure stop me.” – Lex Luthor
Lex Luthor has been Superman’s archnemesis for most of his existence and is often considered the Man of Steel’s opposite. He often relies on intellect over strength, using his genius for his own needs, and is morally depraved. The character started as a rogue scientist and has since served as the President of the United States. He now runs LexCorp, one of the most powerful high-tech conglomerates in the world.
Like most of Superman’s enemies, Lex Luthor is determined to destroy Superman. However, unlike them, he possessed no special powers or abilities, only his cunning. He was a savage character determined to make those who crossed him suffer. Despite this, he genuinely loves his family and admires people like Albert Einstein.
Luthor despises the Man of Steel for two reasons. Firstly because Superman is constantly thwarting his plans. Secondly, the alien contradicts all his human achievements from an ideological standpoint.
Luthor is responsible for creating Bizarro and Superboy (a clone made using the combined DNA of himself and Superman) and was even a brief member of the Justice League.
After all these years, Lex remains one of the best Superman villains of all time.
1. Darkseid
“It is time for the lower beings of creation to remember who they fear in their darkest hours, in their deepest moments of despair. This new multiverse is now infinite. But I am finite. I am final. Darkseid is… THE END.” – Darkseid
Darkseid is the ruler of Apokolips and the god of Tyranndy, determined to enslave all live through the Anti-Life Equation. He is aggressive, sadistic and ruthless and has conquered countless worlds, searching for the Anti-Life Equation. This formula could rid sentient beings of their free will by implanting the certainty that freedom and hope are futile concepts. Instead, he demands devotion and fear from his subjects.
Though he is a being of uncalculated strength, Darkseid chooses to refrain from combat and keep his gloves unsullied unless directly provoked into action.
Earth was one of the many worlds which Darkseid wished to conquer. So he travelled to the planet and confronted Superman personally, overpowering the Kryptonian’s allies and capturing him. Fortunately, Batman was able to release Superman, who pushed Darkseid through a Boom-Tube, which sent him back to Apokolips.
Since he is a New God, Darkseid is seen as one of the most powerful beings in the universe. He is incredibly intelligent and immortal and has proven himself invulnerable, having survived the destruction of an entire planet and remained unphased by the combined power of the Justice League.
He wields the Omega Effect, a power he stole from the Old Gods and from which each of his powers manifested. His Omega Beams are the most powerful, a pair of beams which can lock onto their target and are ensured never to miss, twisting and bending around corners. They can catch speedsters, harm Kryptonians and destroy entire planets. He can also use them to resurrect characters and transport others across the multiverse.
He was once able to use the Anti-Life Equation against Superman, enslaving him during Dark Nights: Death Metal. He was later defeated through the combined efforts of Superboy Prime and Wonder Woman.
He is shown to be indifferent about those who work under him and won’t hesitate to punish those who disappoint him, even if they are his own children.
Which do you think is the best Superman villain? Also read: The Top 10 Best Superman Comics of All Time.
