Not everyMarvelhero has a perfect record. While Marvel Comics’ icons have saved the world and kept evil at bay for decades, they’ve all got moments in their lives where they were the villain of someone else’s story. Avengers, X-Men, and independent heroes all have times when they failed to live up to the standards of heroism.
Sometimes they make a misguided decision, like sendingthe Hulk into outer space. Other times, they act out of pain,like Daredevil’s infamous confrontation with Mysterio. But no matter their reasoning, every hero has a moment where they act a bit more like the villains they fight. Read on to discover 10 timesMarvel heroes were actually the villains.
10Black Panther Divorcing Storm (And Hiding It)
As Seen In:Avengers vs. X-Men
Fans may recall that for a short period, the X-Men’s Storm and Black Panther were one of the biggest power couples in the Marvel Universe. But that romance all fell apart duringAvengers vs. X-Men. Storm sided with her mutant allies and T’Challa was so upset that he annulled their marriage.
What made the event even worse was thatBlack Panther didn’t tell Storm right away. She had to find out from her ex in the middle of a battle. T’Challa is generally a wise man, but he let his feelings of betrayal get the better of him and treated the woman he loved incredibly coldly.
9Captain Marvel Defending Thought-Crime
As Seen In:Civil War II
Civil War IIsaw the Marvel Universe ripped apart by another wedge issue, but this time, the person with the more questionable position was Captain Marvel. Carol Danvers wanted to use Ulysses, a young Inhuman with precognitive abilities, as a way of stopping crimes before they happened, to save lives.
Carol whipped up the hero community into a frenzy, especially when Ulysses hada vision of the Hulk killing the Avengers, causing Hawkeye to kill him with an arrow. Captain Marvel was coming at things with good intentions, but her insistence ended up getting someone who hadn’t done anything killed.
8Professor X Mind-Wiping Mister Fantastic
As Seen In:X-Men/Fantastic Four #4
Professor X takes the protection of mutantkind very seriously, and he is even willing to confront some of the world’s most powerful heroes if Charles feels his brethren are in danger. To assist his son, Franklin, Reed had created a device that could hide one’s mutant genetics. However, Professor X and Magneto didn’t take kindly to that.
Fearing what Mister Fantastic’s device could do to the mutants,Professor X erased the memory of Reed’s invention, but Charles left the memory of the confrontation to emphasize how serious he and Magento were. Professor X has done a lot of questionable things, but this is one of his most damning.
7Cyclops Weaponizing Wolverine’s Daughter
As Seen In:X-Force #1
When Cyclops was forced to step up and lead Utopia, Summers re-established X-Force, and this time, he included Wolverine’s daughter, X-23. Logan was furious that Cyclops had done this as Laura was still trying to recover from trauma. ButCyclops was way too wrapped up in his own concernsto give a second thought to X-23’s well-being.
6Spider-Man Making a Deal with the Devil
As Seen In:The Amazing Spider-Man #545
Spider-Man is one of the most beloved heroes in the Marvel Universe, and even he’s got an unfortunate mark on his record. When Aunt May was dying, Peter looked high and low for a way to save her, and sadly, the answers to his prayers came from someone as low as he could ask for.
Mephisto offered to save Aunt May’s life, at the expense of his marriage to Mary Jane. Despite everyone, including May herself, encouraging Peter to simply let her go, Spider-Man agreed and had the last several years of his life wiped away. This decision was so huge,Spider-Man’s still living in the shadow of itnearly twenty years later.
5Scarlet Witch De-Powering Mutants
As Seen In:House of M #7
The world turned upside down inHouse of M, and fearing what could happen if a change wasn’t made,Scarlet Witch uttered the classic phrase “No more mutants”, ridding the world of nearly a million mutants. Wanda Maximoff meant to do good, but in the end, he became public enemy number one among mutantkind.
4Daredevil Convincing Mysterio to Commit Suicide
As Seen In:Daredevil #7
When it comes to dark moments, Daredevil has one of the worst. Matt Murdock is put through the ringer thanks to a plot concocted by Mysterio, who wanted one last big triumph over a hero before succumbing to cancer. But Daredevil doesn’t viciously beat Mysterio. Instead, he uses the most savage words possible.
Daredevil points out how flawed and unoriginal Mysterio’s plan was, giving him the most brutal verbal take-down he’s ever given. Mysterio is so despondent after the tongue-lashing that he up and decides to shoot himself rather than go on. Daredevil may not have pulled the trigger, but he knew what he was doing when excoriating Mysterio.
3The Illuminati Sending Hulk to Space
As Seen In:The Incredible Hulk #92
The Illuminati is made up of some of the world’s smartest and most proactive heroes in the Marvel Universe. And they recognized that when it came to the Earth’s safety, one of the biggest dangers facing their planet was the Hulk. So what did they do to resolve the situation? They shot him into deep space.
The heroes, of course, didn’t tell Bruce in advance, fearing what he’d do. Sowhen the opportunity presented itself, they exiled Hulk from Earth, hoping he’d settle on a peaceful planet to live out his days. Even if it was in the name of peace, it’s hard to believe the world’s most intelligent heroes couldn’t think of something better.
2Hulk Nearly Conquering the Earth
As Seen In:The Incredible Hulk #106
The Hulk was understandably furious, especially after the Illuminati’s plan failed, and he ended up captured and made a slave on the planet Sakaar. But he broke free and turned his attention to Earth, where he decided tomake those who betrayed Hulk pay for their deceitful and cruel actions.
While one could argue Hulk was right to get payback on the Illuminati, Hulk’s warpath caused far more damage than necessary. Buildings were leveled and lives were lost as Bruce attempted to get back at the traitors who sent him away. But no matter how justified his rage may have been, he went way too far to get revenge.
1Iron Man and the Superhero Registration Act
As Seen In:Civil War
The original Civil War was one of the most brutal, hard-fought battles in the Marvel Universe. After a fatal incident involving superheroes takes the lives of over 600 people, the Superhero Registration Act is passed, and championing the legislation is Iron Man. But Tony Stark goes way beyond being a mouthpiece for the law.
Those Iron Man fails to sway to his side, he begins tracking down and imprisoning them, having them held in a secret prison inside the Negative Zone. Stark is rightfully criticized for a lot of things, butwhat he did inCivil Warwas a betrayalthat arguably stains his character to this day.
