TheFantastic Four’srogues’ gallery consists of some of Marvel’s biggest and most terrifying villains. The foes Marvel’s “First Family” have faced include despotic warlords from both inner and outer space, as well as alien invasions and even gods. Some of these villains have gone on to become some of Marvel’s best and biggest.
The Fantastic Four laid the foundation for the Marvel Universe as fans know it today.
The Fantastic Four laid the foundation for the Marvel Universe as fans know it today. Their high-concept, science fiction-oriented adventures took the team to the edges of reality and into other dimensions, full of terrors and wonders. As a result, The Fantastic Four’s villains are bigger and more powerful. Here are their 10 biggest foes, explained.
Stan Lee and Jack Kirby
Fantastic Four#1
From below the surface came the Mole Man, the first villain to challenge the mettle of The Fantastic Four.With his army of Moloids, the Mole Man attempted an invasion of New York City, only to be repelled by The Fantastic Four. Since then, the Mole Man has nursed a grudge against the team.
Villains such as Doctor Doomor Annihilus are more associated with The Fantastic Four, making it easy to forget just how important Mole Man is to the team’s history. While far less threatening than other villains on this list, the Mole Man still set the precedent for all that came later.
Fantastic Four#18
The Super-Skrull is one of The Fantastic Four’s deadliest foes, largely because he has all of their powers.Created by the Skrulls to prepare Earth for an invasion, the Super-Skrull not only has the team’s abilities, but can shape-shift like other members of his race. This has made him a lethal combination.
The Skrulls have been featured in the MCU, in projects such asCaptain MarvelandSecret Invasion.
However, the Super-Skrull has drifted over time, becoming more of an anti-hero in recent years. Currently, the Skrulls have entered into an alliance with their former enemies, the Kree, and the Super-Skrull is a member of the ruling family’s inner circle. HowImperial, which realigns Marvel’s cosmic side, will affect the Super-Skrull remains to be seen.
Fantastic Four#19
Rama Tut’s debut, at first glance, was seemingly just another far-out villain for The Fantastic Four, but it was where one of Marvel’s most twisted legacies began.The Fantastic Four traveled back to Ancient Egypt, where they met a pharaoh using high-tech weapons to crush his opponents. Rama Tut was defeated, but would return a few months later, as a different villain.
Rama Tut was defeated, but would return a few months later, as a different villain.
Rama Tut was, in fact, Nathaniel Richards, a time traveler from the 41st century who, bored with his utopian world, traveled through time looking for new realms and worlds to conquer. In time, he wouldtake the name Kang the Conqueror,and would hold even more aliases throughout Marvel’s history, including Immortus and Victor Timely.
Fantastic Four#36
Sometimes the best villains are dark opposites of the heroes they fight, and nowhere is this more apparent than the Frightful Four.Led by the Wizard, who was, to that point, a foe of the Human Torch, the Frightful Four took Reed, Sue, Ben and Johnny down to the wire.
The Frightful Four’s membership has fluctuated over the years, with the Wizard being the only consistent member. Among those who have been members of the Frightful Four include Medusa, of the Inhumans, as well as sometimes Spider-Man foe the Sandman. Despite the Frightful Four’s high turnover, they remain deadly.
Fantastic Four Annual#6
Annihilus, the evil warlord who ruled the Negative Zone through sheer terror, has been responsible for so much destruction in the Marvel Universe.The Fantastic Four met Annihilus for the first time during their initial trip to the Negative Zone, seeking a cure that would save Invisible Woman’s life. Annihilus and the Negative Zone would become Marvel staples.
Annihilationalso paved the way for a revamp of Marvel’s cosmic stable of characters.
Many of The Fantastic Four’s biggest villains would go on to challenge the entire Marvel Universe, and Annihilus was no exception. In 2005’sAnnihilationevent, Annihilus led the “Annihilation Wave” across the universe, killing anything that got in his way.Annihilationalso paved the way for a revamp of Marvel’s cosmic stable of characters.
Brian Michael Bendis, Mark Millar and Adam Kubert
Ultimate Fantastic Four#1
The Maker, a Reed Richards variant from Marvel’s first Ultimate Universe, began his career as a hero, but was driven mad by circumstances beyond his control.After his universe was destroyed, Ultimate Reed Richards’ intellect continued to grow, but his moral nature soon fell by the wayside, and the Maker was born.
The original Ultimate Universe was destroyed inUltimatum.
The Maker’s reign of evil has extended across Marvel’s multiverse. After escaping from prison, the Maker traveled to another Earth, where he manipulated its super-powered individuals, creating an oppressive regime governed by twisted versions of the Hulk, Sunspot and Colossus. They answered only to the Maker, who finally got his “perfect world.”
Fantastic Four#20
The Molecule Man is one of the most powerful foes The Fantastic Four ever faced, and he remains one of Marvel’s most terrifying.Thanks to a lab accident, meek and timid Owen Reece was given the ability to manipulate matter at the molecular level. Anything Owen could think of, he could create.
Various events throughout Marvel’s history, including bothSecret Wars’crossovers, have stressed how powerful the Molecule Man is, but fortunately for The Fantastic Four and other heroes, he just wants to be left alone. Too often, he is drawn back in, such as in the secondSecret Wars, where it was revealed he was the Beyonder’s ultimate weapon.
Stan Lee and John Buscema
Silver Surfer#3
Mephisto has terrorized many heroes (and villains) of the Marvel Universe for many years, but he has taken a special interest in The Fantastic Four.From his dark realm,Mephisto seeks to collect innocent souls.He has found one in particular most appealing: Franklin Richards, the son of Reed and Sue Storm.
Mephisto is played in the MCU by Sasha Baron Cohen.
Yet Mephisto would learn not to underestimate Franklin Richards. The demon lord kidnapped the child, imprisoning Franklin in a diamond case. Franklin was able to escape captivity, and, using his vast powers, seemingly annihilated Mephisto, reducing him to nothing. Mephisto would of course return to tempt the Marvel Universe, but he learned his lesson about provoking children.
Fantastic Four#48
When Galactus debuted at the height of the Silver Age of Comics, there was not any villain quite like him in comics.While The Fantastic Four had already met cosmic beings such as Uatu the Watcher, they had yet to encounter a primal force of nature like Galactus. The planet-eater towered over them all, and was barely defeated.
Galactus also heralded the arrival of a new type of comic book character: a space god whose motivations were far beyond human comprehension.
Galactus’ first appearance is also regardedas one of Marvel’s finest hours, a tense story that still holds up 60 years later. This landmark story is a testament to Lee and particularly Kirby’s imaginations. Galactus also heralded the arrival of a new type of comic book character: a space god whose motivations were far beyond human comprehension.
Fantastic Four#5
Doctor Doom is one of comics’ greatest villains, and he got his start in the pages of The Fantastic Four.Unlike most villains who specialize in either science or magic, Doctor Doom is a master of both. This mastery of two disparate disciplines has given Doctor Doom a major advantage over The Fantastic Four.
Doctor Doom will be portrayed in the MCU by Robert Downey Junior. The late Julian McMahon played Doom in Fox’s twoFantastic Fourfilms.
In the 60+ years since his debut,Doctor Doom has grown beyondThe Fantastic Four, and nearly every hero in the Marvel Universe has encountered him at one point or another. As TheFantastic Fourlaid the Marvel Universe’s foundations, it is only fitting their villains will be some of the publisher’s biggest.
