Best female comic book villains of all time

(Image citation: George V Marston)

One of Marvel Studios' recent breakout characters, the nefarious Agatha Harkness, is getting her personal Disney Plus streaming render titled House of Harkness, fashioning her the get-go MCU female villain to headline her own story.

In comic books, female person villains are some of the most popular characters on the page, with characters like Catwoman, Harley Quinn, and Mystique oftentimes crossing backward and forward and blurring the line between 'hero' and 'baddie' thanks to their popularity as protagonists.

On it note, we're counting down pat the best female supervillains of all time!

10. Scandal Savage

One of the breakout characters of Gail Simone's Confidential Six, Scandal Savage has everything you want in a great supervillain. She's got an unimpeachable origin as the only acknowledged child of classic villain Vandal Savage, asset a great look, a distinct thingumabob, and a vicious streak a mile wide.

Scandal would Be higher on this list if she had operated connected her own more often, but even as the leader of the brutally bad-tail end (and at times expendable) mercenaries the Secret Vi, she's had approximately in earnest poikilothermic moments.

She's been mostly hit the power system for, oh, two reboots now and count - but we ass't help merely wish for a substantial comeback preferably rather than later.

9. Cheetah

Atomic number 3 one of Wonder Woman's greatest foes, other iterations of Chetah have been around almost as lengthy as the Amazon River herself.

Though numerous women, and even one man, deliver held the identity of the Acinonyx jubatus at different points, information technology's the modern Cheetah, Barbara Minerva, that has caused her the most problems.

Possessing the appearance and physical qualities of a cheetah thanks to a minatory custom, Minerva has menaced Wonder Woman time and again again, coveting her dish and gilt lasso.

She's been one of Diana's primary enemies since 2016's Wonder Adult female: Rebirth, which helped redefine her blood and powers.

Cheetah appeared as one of the main villains of Wonder Cleaning lady 1984, played by Kristen Wiig.

8. Star Sky-blue

Even though Christmas carol Ferris, the most conspicuous Star Sky-blue, has been more heroic than wicked for the last couple of years, Star Sapphire's legacy as a villain goes back much farther than that... whol the direction to the '40s, when a somewhat contrary Genius Sapphire menaced Jay Garrick, the primary Flash.

Wi Sapphire is, however, best called a Green Lantern scoundrel. Originally, Hal Jordan's girlfriend Carol Ferris would undertake the identity of Star Cerulean when she became possessed by a strange gem from outer space.

Eventually, during the news report Green Lantern Corps: Sins of the Star Sky-blue, it was revealed that, like the Green Lanterns, the Star Sapphires comprise an entire corps of beings dedicated to the defense of true love.

7. Enchantress

Amora the Enchantress is an Asgardian sorceress, and one of Thor's oldest and about powerful foes. Enchantress uses her bewitching powers to try to ensnare others into her service, though she sportsmanlike as often relies connected her natural feminine wiles to accomplish the same thing, often using the infatuated Skurge, the Executioner as sinew to back up her schemes.

Though she was initially interested in seducing Thor, Enchantress's schemes quickly became more elaborate and pushing, every bit she straight joined Baron Zemo's unconventional Masters of Evil in Avengers #9, and challenged the Avengers over and concluded in her quest for powerfulness.

She hasn't ready-made it to active-action just one of these days, simply her heir Sylvie, successor to the Asgardian magic of the Enchantress, was modified into the MCU in Loki.

6. Viper

The unquestioned mistress of indefinite of the largest sects of the terrorist organization Snake, Viper, a.k.a. Madame Hydra is one of the most regent, and evil women in the Marvel Universe.

Though her only real superpowe in comics could be considered her slowed senescent process, her strength lies in the main in her formidable fight grooming, her charismatic leadership, and her ruthless conviction.

Though she has faced many heroes terminated the long time, her chief enemies are usually Maitre d' America and Wolverine, the latter of which she trained under the same master on the streets of the criminal island of Madripoor.

In fact, her human relationship with Michigander was one of the focal points of the 2013 moving picture The Wolverine.

5. Grandma Goodness

Granny Good is one of the most unique (and terrifying) villains you're probably to find on this or any other list.

Known for the brutal training she inflicts on Darkseid's soldiers, her slavish devotion to the ideals of Apokolips, and her imposing frame, Granny is one of the most unequaled and disturbing of New Gods, introduced in Jack Kirby's Fourth Creation saga.

Though she trains so much of Darkseid's Army, she is best known as the leader and trainer of his Female Furies, a group of elite women warriors that serve the will of Darkseid.

Granny is also responsible for training onetime Female person Fury Voluminous Barda, who subsequent helped Scott Unblock, a.k.a. Mr. Miracle run from Apokolips, guaranteeing herself two formidable enemies for life - or death, as Barda and Scott were delineated as kill Granny in Tom King and Mitch Gerads' Mister Miracle limited series.

She had a brief springy-action cameo in Zack Snyder's Justice Conference.

4. Harley Quinn

Though she started as something of a sidekick for Batman's nemesis the Joker connected Batman: The Animated Series, Harley Quinn became a breakout fan favorite, finally crossing into comics. Scorn her initial status as a supporting fictional character, she quickly received her own Harley Quinn on-going series, and later a starring role in the Batman twisting-off Gotham City Sirens.

So, what makes Harley and so eager? At the start, her popularity stemmed from Arleen Sorkin's hilarious and communicatory performance, but it's the way the essence of the character has translated to comics that really makes Harley terrific; the fact that she evokes Batman's greatest nemesis while maintaining an attitude and style all her own.

Harley Quinn has go a mainstay of DC comic books with nine-fold headlining series under her knock, and a current animated serial on the Direct current Universe moving service. She too took a stellar role in 2020's Birds of Quarry (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of Combined Harley Quinn) moving-picture show.

Though she's still quite villainous in some media, the nub comic playscript Harley Quinn is on a current path of redemption following the Batman: Joker War story.

3. Mystique

Mystique is best represented as the ultimate femme fatale.

A hardihood, competent, ruthless super-espy with the enchanting mightiness to change her appearance and a natural invest for seduction to vertebral column it up, Mystique has semipermanent menaced the X-Hands both on her personal and as a member of several incarnations of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants.

Arsenic with many mutants, she has a kindred connection to the X-Work force as the mother of Fishing worm and the stepmother of Rogue.

Though she did spend whatever time among the X-Men and working secretly for Prof X, she is unexcelled known as the leader of numerous groups of villainous mutants, arsenic well as her sum character in the X-Men film franchise.

She also headed up her possess Mystique on-going serial in the mid-'00s.

Mystique has late been working aboard the X-Workforce as an key of Krakoa - but upcoming developments in The Trial of Magneto and Jonathan Hickman's Inferno title seem to indicate she could be a manoeuver adversary to the team erst again very soon.

2. Dark Phoenix

Though the Dour Phoenix can technically inhabit any host (as seen in 2012's Avengers vs. X-Men), its most painting avatar was Jean Grey, one of the founding X-Hands.

While her actual appearances are limited (with her greatest story undoubtedly organism Uncanny X-Manpower: The Drear Phoenix Saga), the Dark Phoenix's wallop on X-Work force comics and comics, in full general, is almost immeasurable. As one of the premiere, and most prominent heroes to go inexorably to the dark position, Jean's time equally the Dark Phoenix rocked the relatively static nature of superhero comics up until that aim.

The Dark Phoenix's predominate of affright culminated in the end of an entire solar system, leading Jean Grey, in a moment of clarity, to sacrifice herself to end the Dark Phoenix's hold along her, sparking a round of death and rebirth that still reverberates in comics.

A new Phoenix host was just named in Avengers: Enter the Phoenix, in which Sound reflection took on the mantle - and the Phoenix Force itself told Thor that she is his mother.

Semidark Phoenix has successful it to the big screen twice, including an name 2019 cinema that put the coping stone on Fox's X-Work force films.

1. Catwoman

Sure enough, sure, she may be best titled more of an opposed-hero these days, but Catwoman began as a villain. And, on a metaphorical level, isn't perfectly straddling the line of villain and hero, lithely stepping into either role as required, the mint embodiment of the fickle nature of a cat?

Catwoman's non the kinda scoundrel who embarks on a world-conquering, homicidal conquest, but the kind WHO vexes her nemesis at every turn, going to unheard-of lengths to induce what she wants, and life live out past her own rules.

Nearly as often an ally or even a devotee of Batman as much as his foeman, Catwoman still started her vocation A a jewel thief, brazenly robbing, and occasionally seducing Gotham Metropolis's wealthiest citizens.

In wholly of her numerous and popular incarnations, including her last live-action appearance in The Dark Knight Rises, she always starts at odds with Batman, only siding with him once helium's given in to his obvious attraction to his dependable vis-a-vis, but almost always returning to her yellow life when he's outlived his usefulness.

She smooth went to that extent as to pull up stakes him at the altar in Batman #50 - though her future function atomic number 3 hero Beaver State baddie is still playing out in the current Batman/Catwoman incomprehensive series which continues the saga of their romance.

There aren't many characters who stool say they're stronger-willed than Batman, but it isn't Catwoman who compromises her principles in the figure of love or, more accurately, lecherousness.

I've been Newsarama's resident Wonder Comics expert and general comic book historiographer since 2011. I've also been the on-site reporter at the most major comic conventions such as Humourous-Learn International: San Diego, New York State Comic Yard bird, and C2E2. Outside of comic journalism, I am the creative person of many weird pictures, and the guitarist of many heavy riffs. (They/Them)