“Every villain is a hero of his or her own story,” says Christopher Vogler, and super-villains are no exception. The phrase’s complexity is better understood if we go into the backgrounds of these villains or super-villains. These characters experienced trauma as well, which either threw their psychological framework into disarray or planted the seeds of eternal vengeance.
People sympathize with these villains, and their genesis stories might be heartbreaking. Batman shared this sentiment, which is why he never killed his foes. Relating to his traumatic experience Batman believed that if he had not been raised properly, he might have gone down the wrong path as well.
To prove his ideas, he tried to save Joker from death countless times. With that being said, the subject of today’s video is Super-villains with tragic roots. Their tragic stories contain cosmic or once-in-a-million coincidences rather than ordinary situations. Their physiology was occasionally affected as a result of their altered psychological framework. So, without further ado, here’s our list of ten super-villains with tragic backstories.
MR FREEZE
As a boy, Victor Fries had a fascination with freezing animals in order to preserve them so that they may continue to live in the future. Concerned about his conduct, his parents enrolled him in a severe boarding school, where he felt alone and depressed. Nevertheless, when he met and befriended Nora, a young woman with whom he fell in love and subsequently got married.
Their joy, however, was fleeting: Nora was diagnosed with a terminal condition, and Fries, stricken with grief, sought to rescue her using cryogenic technology. The experiment, however, went horribly wrong, and Fries’ equipment misfired, devouring him and his lab in an ice blast. Victor had survived, but his body could now only exist at subzero temperatures, and Nora’s health had worsened.
In order to keep his wife’s therapy going, he built a suit that would now protect him in his transformed state. He began robbing banks under the alias Mr. Zero in order to obtain money. He was finally stopped by Batman and Robin, but he persisted.
As Mr. Zero, he employs cryonic technology to construct a pistol that fires a beam that freezes any object in its path. Gotham City thought he was dead after he had faked his death. Throughout this time, Fries altered his suit and reappeared as Mr. Freeze.
He is still fighting Batman and Robin to this day. Freeze has trapped everyone in a courtroom in Villains United. He meets the Calculator, who persuades him to join the Secret Society of Super-Villains while using a frozen guy as a chair.
During his stint with the gang, he creates a sub-zero machine for Nyssa al Ghul in return for access to her own Lazarus Pit. He tries to resuscitate Nora without waiting for the pool chemicals to be adjusted. She escapes, though, as the twisted Lazara. She holds a grudge toward her spouse and distances herself from him.
THE LIZARD
Dr. Curtis “Curt” Connors grew up in Coral Gables, Florida. He went to medical school and graduated with advanced degrees in biology and biochemistry. He met Martha in college, and they had a son named Billy. He became a skilled physician and enrolled in the United States Army where he treated injured soldiers on the battlefield in an emergency.
Unfortunately, his right arm was severely damaged in a military explosion, necessitating amputation. Doc Connors devoted his life after returning to civilian life to developing a serum to repair missing limbs. Connors devised a serum he was confident would work by using DNA from reptiles that naturally regrow severed limbs.
Connors used himself as the first test subject, injecting himself with a dosage of the serum, and was overjoyed when his arm began to regenerate. However, the reptile DNA in his serum combined with and mutated his own DNA transformed him into The Lizard, a violent beast. While Spider-Man finally “cured” Connors and restored him to his human form, he made another effort to make this serum safe for use ending in Connors morphing into the Lizard.
However, he is saved again but this time by his former colleague Professor Charles Xavier and his initial squad of X-Men. Connors reverted to The Lizard after reacting to the chemicals used on the Rhino. The Lizard then frames Spider-Man for a jewelry heist but discovers him in public, demonstrating the Lizard’s ability to climb but spraining his arm in the process.
BIZARRO
Bizarro is a doppelgänger of Superman. Originally, Bizarro was accidentally made in a laboratory. A scientist was showing Superboy his freshly devised “duplicating ray,” which he was testing on a radium pellet and a gem. The replicated radium, however, was non-radioactive, and the diamond burned.
The scientist then fell and knocked the machine, producing an imperfect Superboy accidentally. The scientist’s assurances that the copy was not alive proved wrong as it managed to escape from the lab. Despite his desire to be liked, Bizarro’s looks and unpredictable conduct terrified many, especially because he was unaware of his own super-strength.
Shortly before Superboy understood the fragments of the machine that would function as Kryptonite to him, he was befriended by a blind girl. Bizarro charged directly at Superboy, having calculated that the shockwave from his demise would heal his friend’s blindness. Lex Luthor developed the later Bizarro by using the “duplicating ray” on the adult Superman and hoping to use the clone to fight Superman.
This Bizarro, on the other hand, refused to cooperate and instead attempted to imitate Superman. Unfortunately, his attempts to emulate the heroics of the original were sloppy and disastrous, and he abducted Lois. This was remedied when Lois used the “duplication ray” to make a Bizarro-Lois for Bizarro. Feeling abandoned by the inhabitants of Earth, they relocated to the world of Htrae, which possessed old technological technology that was utilized to populate the planet with many more Bizarros created in the same way.
Almost everyone on Htrae resembled an ugly Superman or a hideous Lois Lane. Superman was jailed for being normal on his first visit to Htrae in Action Comics, but he plea-bargained his freedom in exchange for a plan to convert the shape of the earth into a cube.
RED SKULL
Johann Schmidt was born as an only child in Northern Germany. Schmidt was a bright young man who went on to become a physicist. He got fascinated by Norse mythology over time, developing a belief that the Norse Gods and their “magic” may be more than the myth. Schmidt enthralled Adolf Hitler with his beliefs after meeting him, and Heinrich Himmler had recruited Schmidt to the Schutzstaffel.
Schmidt’s ascent to prominence in Nazi Germany, however, was halted by Ernst Kaufmann, who then sought to obstruct Schmidt’s access to Hitler. Unwilling to allow his new position to be challenged, Schmidt assassinated Kaufmann in June 1934, as part of their Night of the Long Knives, as he succeeded to gain control of his weapons program.
Schmidt resumed the assassinations of his adversaries after the death of Ernst Kaufmann, hitting the facility in Kummersdorf where he had hired Arnim Zola. Schmidt eventually ascended to the level of Obergruppenführer and established his own SS organization, dubbing it HYDRA. Schmidt built HYDRA on an ancient culture that worshiped a strong Inhuman, a concept that was shared by all of Schmidt’s hypotheses. Nazi Germany invaded Poland in 1939, kicking off World War II.
Schmidt actively participated in several German conquests, as the war progressed, achieving several high military ornaments, including the Panzer Badge and the Iron Cross First Class. Schmidt may also have suffered a wound during combat, earning him the Wound Badge, which he would wear on his own SS uniform.
Schmidt it is heard in 1940 that the initial, unstable form of Abraham Erskine’s Super Soldier Serum had finally been completed, courtesy to Wilfred Malick, who brought the serum’s final component. Schmidt wanted to utilize the serum for himself, but Erskine resisted, despite Schmidt’s commands and even the fear of execution.
Schmidt immediately felt all the effects going through his body, as his muscles increased and his intellect got clearer, as Schmidt finally became the superior man he had always desired. However, the procedure had severe terrible adverse effects, leaving Schmidt with a crimson and horribly disfigured face. Despite the fact that he disguised his deformities by wearing a synthetic mask that mimicked his prior appearance, he became known as “Red Skull.”
MORBIUS
Michael Morbius grew up in the Greek town of Nafplio. Michael was reared by his single mother after his father abandoned them as the son of Makarioa Morbius. As a result of his unique blood disorder, Michael spent his boyhood alone. Despite his illness, he was a bright student who enjoyed reading. Emil Nikos and his sister Liza Nikos were Michael’s closest buddies.
The three of them were as close as a family could be, but things became complicated when he confessed his affections to Elizabeth and she rejected him. Michael and Emil were great scientists while in college, they received a Nobel Prize for their contributions to biochemistry. They sought to cure the blood illness by using vampires, bats, and electroshocks in experimental therapy.
Its adverse effects transformed him into a pseudo-vampire who required blood to survive and obtained classic vampire attributes such as an antipathy to sunlight, flying, heightened strength, speed, and healing. His general look also altered as well: he developed fangs, his nose flattened to resemble a bat, and his skin become exceedingly pale. In addition, to that, anything that was bitten by him would transform into a living vampire.
He killed Emil when he first felt the transformation because he couldn’t control his bloodthirst. Liza vowed vengeance on Morbius after learning what had happened to her brother. Morbius arrived in the United States via ship and massacred the crew in his blood desire.
He attempted suicide but failed and rented a room at a beach house, where he met Spider-Man, who was at the moment attempting to reverse the procedure that had given him six arms. Morbius assaulted Spider-Man, but their fight was cut short when Dr. Connors morphed into the Lizard.
BANE
Bane’s genesis is comparable to that of another literary character, Alexandre Dumas’ Edmond Dantes. Bane’s youth and early adulthood are spent within the walls of Pea Duro, a famed prison in Santa Prisca, to fulfill his father’s life sentence. Despite being imprisoned, his inherent powers allow him to acquire remarkable capabilities inside the confines of the jail. He reads everything he can get his hands on, works out in the prison gym, and trains to fight in the cruel classroom of jail life.
Given his surroundings, he seems to have acquired teachers of all kinds throughout his captivity, ranging from severe prisoners to an old Jesuit priest, from whom he appears to gain a classical education. When Bane returns to Santa Prisca years later, he murders this priest. However, at the age of eight, he commits his first murder, murdering a criminal who intended to exploit him to obtain knowledge about the jail.
Throughout his time in jail, Bane keeps a teddy bear he names Osito with him, which he regards to be his sole buddy. It is revealed that Osito has a hole in his back to keep a dagger, which Bane uses to bully anybody who abuses him. Bane eventually ascends to the position of “king” of Pea Duro prison.
The prison’s administrators take notice and finally compel him to become a test subject for Venom, a mysterious substance that had killed all previous participants. It almost kills him at first, but he survives and discovers that its effects increase his physical power, despite the fact that he must take it every 12 hours.
Years down the line, Bane and some associates flee Pea Duro. His desire shifts to annihilating Batman, whose stories he had heard while serving his term. He is enthralled by Gotham City because, like the jail, it is a place where fear reigns supreme: in this instance, fear of Batman. Bane believes that the demonic bat that has tormented his dreams since infancy is a symbol of Batman.
TWO-FACE
Harvey Dent’s youth was filled with adversity. As a result of growing up with an abusive father, he developed suppressed mental diseases such as bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. His work ethic, on the other hand, enabled him to advance to the position of Gotham City’s youngest district attorney at the age of 26.
The media labeled Dent “Apollo” because he was charming, attractive, and apparently untouchable. He was committed to defending law and order and became one of Batman’s early followers, allies, and even friends.
Because of his significantly harsher demeanor, Batman and Commissioner Gordon developed a slight mistrust for him, suspecting that he may be the vigilante labeled “Holiday.” Sal “Boss” Maroni, believing Dent was responsible for his father’s murder, flung acid in Dent’s face during a trial, bringing the partnership to a terrible end. Dent’s left cheek was terribly disfigured. Dent fled from the hospital and became insane.
He got preoccupied with duality and opposites, and created a second ego, the diabolical Two-Face, to go along with the law-and-order-minded Dent. His hallmark as Two-Face were petty misdemeanors, the number two. His fixation is also reflected in his clothing, which is frequently made up of two pieces made of quite different materials.
He always carries a double-sided coin with one side defaced with him, which he continuously flips to make any decisions. At important junctures, Two-Face flips the coin: the scarred side would generally result in a crime, while the clean side would allow Two-Face to do the right thing, such as returning his wealth or abstaining from murder.
GALACTUS
Galactus is the solitary survivor of the Multiverse’s sixth iteration. Originally, Galactus was a humanoid called Galan, born in the previous iteration of Earth-616 on the planet Taa, a paradise-like world whose culture is reported to have been the most sophisticated of any known universe at the time, to the scientist Taaia. However, the Sixth Infinity and all of its worlds were in the terminal stages of collapse owing to the multiversal renewal cycle and were being eaten by the Abstract Entity known as the Black Winter.
He was Taaia’s genetically created kid, Taa’s closest approach to a superhero. She was a negligent mother due to her responsibilities to the world, giving him minimal human interaction and placing him in a technologically sophisticated crib to nurture. When his mother brought home the Silver Surfer, his time-traveling future herald.
He decided to take advantage of the chance to teach him empathy, believing that it would push him to work more in the future to fight his hunger. The “Big Crunch” that this universe was undergoing was causing lethal radiation that was wiping out all life across the cosmos. Galan, a space explorer, was sent to explore the universe in search of a way to save Taa, but he found none.
The radiation finally killed off all but a small percentage of Taa’s people. Knowing that their deaths were unavoidable, Galan recommended to the survivors that they die in style by driving one of their starships right into the core of the “Cosmic Egg.” As the spacecraft carrying Galan and his other survivors neared the Big Crunch’s focal point, the heat and radiation killed everyone but saved Galan, who curiously found himself infused with new vigor.
Galan was contacted by the incarnation of the Sixth Infinity, the Sentience of the Multiverse, who fused its essence with the mortal Galan, giving birth to a new being that would survive the multiversal renewal: Galactus, the Devourer of Worlds. The Black Winter told a different story about Galan’s survival, stating that it had spared him and transformed him into Galactus to brand him as its Herald.
DOCTOR DOOM
Victor von Doom was raised in a Romani colony outside of Haasenstadt, Latveria. Cynthia, his mother, was slain in a botched agreement with Mephisto. Despite his father’s efforts to care for her, a noblewoman died, and Werner von Doom escaped with a young Victor on a cold winter’s night.
Victor survived the cold, but his father did not. Doom desired to expand his understanding of science and magic in order to save his mother, whose death he condemned on Mephisto. Victor was in love with a lady called Valeria when he was younger, but she rebuffed his attempts. Victor received a scholarship from Hegeman State University in New York.
He meets Reed Richards and Ben Grimm for the first time while taking studies at the university. They grew estranged, prompting Reed Richards to conduct his first prank, altering Victor’s last name on a trophy to “Doof.” Doom grew fascinated with creating a contraption that could project a being’s astral form into other realms, believing that it would allow him to rescue his mother’s soul from Mephisto’s grip.
Reed pointed out a mistake in Doom’s calculations, but Doom arrogantly dismissed his warnings, believing Reed was trying to outdo him, most likely because they disliked each other. Doom traversed the world, disgraced and furious. He eventually stumbled into a tiny Tibetan community of monks who helped him make a set of armor.
He returned to his country of Latveria to depose the ruler and establish himself as the king. He then proceeded to exploit his country’s resources to pursue his goals of global dominance. Doom’s machinations brought him into a confrontation with the Fantastic Four and a slew of other superheroes on several occasions.
MAGNETO
Erik Lehnsherr, also known as Magneto, is a strong mutant who treads on grey regions to preserve his people as Magneto, the master of magnetism. Max was born and reared in Nuremberg, Germany, by a middle-class Jewish family. He was drawn to a young Romani girl called Magda, the daughter of the school cleaner while attending a nearby school.
To get her attention, Max would make necklaces and succeed in athletic events. On his way home from school one day, Max came across a Nazi rally and discovered his uncle Erich beaten and carrying a placard that said he had disgraced a German woman. Soon later, during a school event, Max won a javelin tournament to impress Magda but was again accused of cheating the next day.
Max was advised that he could either give up his medal or re-create the throw using a “standard” javelin. Max was accused of cheating again, fired, and assaulted by the other children after winning the tournament a second time. He saw atrocities committed by the Nazi tyranny at Auschwitz as a child.
Years down the line, after fleeing, he discovered, at the expense of his own daughter’s life, that he possessed the mutant ability to produce and manipulate magnetic fields, a trait that instilled more hatred and terror in those who were not like him.
Magneto planned to conquer the planet in order to get power for the mutants, which he refers to as Homo superior, to become the dominant species on Earth after being a target for so long and clearly rejecting the prospect of any peace with humans. When he decided to spread his views via force, he found himself in direct battle with his erstwhile partner, Professor Charles Xavier, and his X-Men, mutants who shared a desire for peaceful mutant-human cooperation.
As the commander of the Brotherhood and the Sycophants, his reputation as an inspiring figurehead and a frightening menace earned him control of the kingdom of Genosha until its destruction. Magneto had the X-Men as allies on several occasions.