These heroes, whether intentionally or unintentionally, have used their superpowers to manipulate those around them. Sometimes, they don’t even need their powers in order to psychologically mess with either their allies or their enemies. These eight characters throughout comic book history are among Marvel’s worst of the best.
8 Tony Stark
The billionaire playboy who would eventually become Iron Man has rarely been a symbol of honor or justice. He’s known to be selfish, arrogant, and irresponsible, even after donning his superhero attire. However, his journey as Iron Man teaches him the cost of doing what’s right, even if that cost is doing what’s wrong.
One such instance of this is during the Civil War storyline. Like the film, this story finds Stark and Steve Rogers at odds over the superhero registry. It’s revealed that Peter Parker is being manipulated to support the registration, while unregistered heroes are being imprisoned by Stark in the Negative Zone.
7 Black Widow
Natasha Romanoff has a complicated past before she became an Avenger. As a child, she was trained to become a Black Widow assassin in the Red Room. During this time, she herself was manipulated to killed Iron Man and Hawkeye, though she eventually was cured of her brainwashing and became a close ally of them.
However, this time as an assassin saw Natasha doing whatever it took to take out her enemies. Often, Natasha’s villainous actions were a cause of brainwashing or manipulation from some other source. Still, the Marvel Comics version of Natasha is often one of the Avengers’ most untrustworthy members.
6 Wanda Maximoff
MCU fans know all too well how dangerous the Scarlet Witch can be. As a user of Chaos Magic, Wanda is capable of manipulating reality, energy, and even souls. When used for her own desires, Wanda has become responsible for some major Marvel Comics events, such as the genocide of mutants in House of M.
However, Wanda’s goal has rarely ever been power, eternal life, or riches. Often, her manipulation of others, their minds, or their reality is in pursuit of living a comfortable life for herself. In WandaVisionand Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, MCU fans see this enacted through her search for her children.
5 Venom
Eddie Brock was a lowly journalist before his career was ruined by Spider-Man. However, he got his chance for revenge when he was possessed by the alien symbiote known as Venom. Together, the two became one of Spider-Man’s greatest adversaries, despite Brock’s memories being manipulated by the symbiote.
Venom isn’t always an evil character, however. Eddie Brock’s determination to make up for his complicated past even results in becoming an ally of Spider-Man. However, Eddie and the symbiote are constantly battling for control, with one trying to manipulate the other into doing what they want.
4 Namor
Namor, despite commonly being a hero, is at times one of the most arrogant and narcissistic Marvel characters. Especially when Namor is at positions of power is he at his most volatile in terms of his emotional behavior. For example, as a member of the Illuminati, Namor’s hostility often came at odds with the rest of the group.
On the other hand, Namor has quite a reason to act arrogant and disrespectful towards the rest of the world. As the first mutant, Namor has rarely been accepted by large parts of society. In a way, his hatred and callous manipulations of humanity have been a result of the way mutants are discriminated against in the comics.
3 Emma Frost
Speaking of mutants, one can’t discuss manipulation in the MCU without mentioning Emma Frost. As a telepath, Emma is capable of mind control, illusions, and altering others’ memories. Before becoming an ally of Charles Xavier, she used these mutant powers to manipulate younger mutants like Kitty Pryde.
However, joining the X-Men doesn’t exactly fix Emma’s proclivity to moral ambiguity. Emma is subject to a secondary mutation, which gives her an additional power to her telepathy, a crystallized diamond form. While this makes her a strong ally for the X-Men, it also causes her to lose empathy for others.
2 Eros
Starfox, also known as Eros, appears in a mid-credits scene of The Eternals, played by Harry Styles. This character is an Eternal and the brother of Thanos, but by the looks seems more charming and heroic than his family member. Don’t be deceived by Harry Styles’s charm, as Eros is a very dangerous individual in the comics.
As an Eternal, Eros’s main powers include the ability to manipulate people’s emotions. This has allowed him to do some pretty heinous things, including sexually assaulting a married woman. He was defended in court by Jennifer Walters, a.k.a. She-Hulk, who he also manipulated into being seduced by him.
1 Loki
As the Trickster God of Asgard and brother to Thor, Loki has had a long history of being manipulative. After all, it’s through Loki’s manipulation of Hulk that leads to the initial formation of the Avengers. However, Loki’s most surprising character development in the comics is his transition to becoming a hero.
Loki has used his powers of deceit and manipulation for good, though these times are few and far between. In Mighty Avengers, Loki took on the appearance of Wanda Maximoff to convince the Avengers to face the Elder God Chthon. He also manipulated Norman Osborn to lead an attack on Asgard.
More: Marvel: Best Villains Turned Heroes, Ranked
