Year: 2021

Marvel: Crisis Protocol currently has 18 affiliations available to players, but the Cabal has stayed relevant and competitive since its introduction as one of the two affiliations in the original core set. The Cabal also has the second-largest roster of affiliated characters (behind only the Avengers) in the Marvel board game.

RELATED: 10 Best Avengers in Marvel: Crisis Protocol, Ranked

While this breadth of options is exciting, it can also make roster-building an intimidating endeavor. While the group once needed to focus on damage-dealers to take advantage of the Cabal's single leadership ability, the addition of an additional leader has given the Cabal multiple playstyles that can take advantage of both aggressive and defensive strategies.

10 Bob, Agent of Hydra

Bob, Agent of Hydra's humorous persona is represented in Marvel: Crisis Protocol with a few interesting gimmicks. First, Bob has a giant rocket launcher that rolls a massive nine dice, but it also deals enough damage to Bob to daze him and can usually be used only once. This downside may seem significant, but Bob also has the unique ability to survive any hit as long as he hasn't yet activated in the given round. His other selling point is that he's the only two-threat character in Cabal, making him an excellent roster option to round out squads in certain crises.

9 Crossbones

Just like this villain's role in the MCU, Crossbones used to be considered a disappointment in Crisis Protocol. While he can hit hard and has solid staying power, his small base and short move meant that he had difficulty getting to and staying in the action. Luckily the Cabal's second leader, Sin, breathed new life into Brock Rumlow. While his short move is still less than ideal, Crossbones loves the objective-focused playstyle that Sin brings to the affiliation. He's perfect for moving to an objective token and laying hits on anyone that gets too close. The only thing that players need to be careful of is Crossbones' fragile mystic and energy defenses. While he's great at soaking physical hits, having to deal with a big attack of the wrong type can result in a stun before he can get to his desired place on the map.

8 Mysterio

Marvel Comics fans know Mysterio is a special effects whiz, and his penchant for trickery is represented well in Marvel: Crisis Protocol. His oddly spread defenses of one physical, one energy, and five mystic may seem like a deal-breaker, but Mysterio has several ways of staying alive through a game. First, Mysterio's stealth means that nobody outside of range three can even attempt to attack him. Those who do close will trigger his Tricks and Traps, which damages enemies and moves them short. Also, Mysterio can use his mystic defense against any attack unless the opponent pays two energy. Beck synergizes well with Red Skull's leadership ability. With it, he always has the energy he needs to use Tricks and Traps.

7 Sabretooth

Sabertooth may be most famous as a member of the Brotherhood of Mutants, but his suite of attacks and abilities makes him a great fit in the Cabal as well. Victor Creed is an excellent single-target assassin capable of chasing characters down with his long move and dishing out damage with his strong basic and builder.

RELATED: 9 Best Marvel Strike Force Teams For Beginners

Aggressive lets Sabretooth move after he's attacked, which can get him into position to attack twice in one turn instead of having to advance. On top of his solid stats and damage, Sabertooth can make a free attack after an enemy attacks him. This extra Claw Slash lets him take double advantage of Red Skull's "energy for attack damage" leadership ability.

6 Omega Red

Arkady Rossovich, aka Omega Red, is the only mutant currently in Marvel: Crisis Protocol who isn't a member of the X-Men, X-Force, or Brotherhood of Mutants affiliations. Omega Red is one of the best area denial tools in the game, and his kit is packed with powers and attacks that keep him alive and punish enemies for getting close.

RELATED: 10 Best Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 Characters To Play As

Omega Red automatically ignores one wound any time it's dealt from an enemy effect, and his Carbonadium Coils heals him if it does damage. Furthermore, any character within range two at the end of its or Omega Red's turn becomes poisoned. This effect synergizes well with his Death Factor, which damages all poisoned enemies within the same range.

5 Red Skull

Red Skull is one of Marvel's best villains and his reputation is honored in Marvel: Crisis Protocol. Despite being an original core box character, Johann Schmidt still sees a good amount of play. His most obvious selling point is his leadership ability, Master of Evil. If Red Skull is on the field in a Cabal-affiliated squad, every friendly character gains one power whenever they damage an enemy with an attack. Since this effect is not limited to once per turn, it allows characters with beams, area attacks, or rapid-fire to gain energy incredibly quickly. Red Skull's Master of the Cube power also helps slower Cabal members by moving them range two for three power.

4 Baron Zemo

Helmut Zemo was released with the Marvel: Crisis Protocol core set, and he's still a staple competitive character today. Zemo is a well-rounded villain who is effective both as an offensive threat and a supporting character for his teammates. Both his free Sword Strike and two-cost Steel Rush automatically cause bleed whether they do damage or not, and the latter increases Zemo's mobility by letting him advance medium after the attacks. Additionally, he's one of few characters with a long movement range, so he's great for quickly getting to objectives and assets on turn one. Even when he's not directly involved in combat, Helmut also grants himself and every other character within range two a free reroll on any attack or defense rolls.

3 Sin

Many affiliations in Marvel: Crisis Protocol have received a second leader, and, in the Cabal, leadership stayed in the Schmidt family. Sin, aka Sinthea Schmidt, is the daughter of the Red Skull, and she brings a new leadership ability to her faction. Instead of her father's energy generation, Sin's Red Mayhem power lets her team push enemies away from objectives and force opponents to drop Asset Tokens between rounds.

RELATED: 10 Best Marvel Legacy Villains Who Lived Up To Their Predecessor

This ability opens up an entirely new playstyle for her team that focuses on area control and denial instead of pure offense. Sin synergizes particularly well with characters like Omega Red and Crossbones that don't like to move around the board more than they have to.

2 Enchantress

Enchantress is expensive at four threat, but her attacks and powers offer unprecedented board control to her player. Her basic attack is a beam, which is rare, and it drains power tokens from each enemy it hits if a wild is rolled. Amora's Kiss is also incredibly powerful. It is currently the only power capable of stripping an Asset or Civilian token from an enemy, after which Enchantress gains it. It works only at range one, but Siren's Call lets Enchantress move any enemy within range three short.

1 M.O.D.O.K.

M.O.D.O.K. may not be as well-known as other Cabal members, but he's arguably the best five-threat character in Marvel: Crisis Protocol. M.O.D.O.K. has just about everything that players could want in a character: His basic attack drains power, he has a long throw, he can move enemies with Bow to the Will of M.O.D.O.K., he can buy dice rerolls, and he changes wilds to blanks on defense. In fact, he's so good that he'll be one of the very few characters to receive a slight nerf when Atomic Mass Games release their updated set of character cards in late 2021. Even with this nerf, he'll still be an extremely strong character that can single-handedly carry matches.

NEXT: 10 MCU Board Games That Every Marvel Fan Should Play

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Family and an attitude of volunteer heroism are major themes in Zack Snyder's three DCEU movies — Man of Steel, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, and Justice League — lending themselves to moments in which the action moves to the wayside and wholesome feelings are allowed to breathe. This

gives the characters a chance to show their softer, more vulnerable sides.

RELATED: 8 Best Concept Artists of Zack Snyder's Justice League Trilogy

Whether these moments show loved ones interacting with each other, heroes helping strangers in gentle ways, or personal moments of introspection, there is no shortage of warmth in this series. These scenes pull at the heartstrings of fans who cherish these characters and their journeys.

Few things are more wholesome than a character-building moment between a father and son. In Man of Steel, when Jonathan Kent takes a young Clark into their cellar to reveal the truth of the boy's otherworldly origins, Clark is overwhelmed and doesn't take it well. Jonathan acknowledges his adopted son's terrible burden, and though he gives words of encouragement, Clark asks, "Can't I just keep pretending I'm your son?"

What does the trick is a hug and the affectionate response, "You are my son." The line references a moment from Superman: Secret Origin (2009) by Geoff Johns. The scene can resonate with many parents and their adopted kids.

After exploring the world for presumably as much as a decade searching to find his place in life, Clark finally returns home to Smallville to reunite with his mother, a welcome moment for the two of them. Overjoyed, he reveals he had discovered the true nature of his birth parents and why he was sent to Earth, though Martha is fearful that this foreshadows her son being taken from her.

"I'm not going anywhere, Mom," Clark says with a comforting hug to quell her tears. "I promise." This sentiment would later prove tragically false in Batman v Superman when humanity manufactures a monster to kill Martha's beloved son. Still, this remains one of the sweetest moments between mother and son in the three films.

Following the intense battle in Smallville during which Clark saved Martha from General Zod, he returns to the damaged farmhouse to reunite with his mother, finding her recovering cherished items from the debris. "I’m sorry," Clark says, sad for the damage sustained by their old family home. "It's only stuff, Clark. It can always be replaced," Martha says, knowing where her priorities are.

Clark replies, "But you can't be," expressing his relief after Zod's recent attack that his mother, who raised and understands him like no one else, is still alive. It's a warm moment when the two can relax after recent events by reminding themselves what matters most.

In Batman v Superman, while Lois dwells on the recent tragedy in Nairomi from the apartment she shares with Clark, he arrives home to find her in the bath. He had bought flowers and offers to cook a meal to surprise her. The atmosphere turns somber when Lois brings up the consequences of the Nairomi incident that had been weighing on her mind, leaving Clark feeling bummed.

Almost like a child, he hands Lois one of the roses he brought. After a few moments, the troubled atmosphere transforms when a smile crosses Lois' face. A job well done, Clark then excitedly steps into the bath, shoes and all, to enjoy an intimate moment with the woman he loves. Flawlessly melding sexuality with romance, it is a cute peek at the life Lois and Clark share.

After watching the world discuss Superman's impact on humanity, Clark finds himself troubled by how his existence has been taken by the world. So he phones his beloved mother in the middle of the night. Martha asks him what's wrong, to which he replies only, "No, nothing, I just... Hi." Smiling warmly, Martha returns the greeting.

RELATED: 10 Details You Missed About Henry Cavill’s Superman

In this moment, Superman is looking for comfort and simply needs to hear his mother's voice. There is a deeply endearing quality to this scene which reminds viewers that even Superman needs his mother sometimes.

In one of the best fight scenes of Zack Snyder's trilogy, Batman unleashes hell to save Martha Kent from Lex Luthor's henchman Anatoli Knyazev and his thugs, plowing through a horde of bad guys before confronting the Russian mercenary holding a flamethrower to the gentle Kansas mother's head. A gunshot and an ignited gas tank later, Martha is safe beneath the Dark Knight's fireproof cape.

"Don't worry, I'm a friend of your son's," he reassures her, to which she gestures to Batman's back and replies, "I figured. The cape." To Batman, this was like saving his own mother of the same name who died all those years ago. It is a moment of levity filled with intense relief that emphasises Martha Kent's innocence.

Zack Snyder described Wonder Woman as "a warrior for love," destroying villains to protect the innocent. In Zack Snyder's Justice League, taking down a group of terrorists at London's Old Bailey to defend a bunch of children on a school trip exemplifies this depiction of the character. This reaches its high point when a little girl asked Wonder Woman in the aftermath, "Can I be like you someday?"

RELATED: 10 Most Heroic Moments in Zack Snyder's Justice League Trilogy

"You can be anything you want to me," replies the Amazonian demigoddess. It is an especially poignant and meaningful message considering Barry Allen, once a perfectly normal human being, became a literal god of speed and time. In this world especially, anything is possible.

During a dark period in his life, struggling with depression resulting from losing what he believed was his humanity, the cybernetic Victor Stone unearths his new power to manipulate the world's technology however he wishes. One of the first things he does is explore CCTV footage to observe a struggling single mother working as a waitress.

Victor uses his mastery of technology to transfer $100,000 to her bank account. The moment she reacts with awe and hugs her children at the ATM, knowing things will be so much better from then on, is tear-jerking. Victor smiles as he watches, a good Samaritan whose humanity re-emerges. In this moment, he becomes a hero to a woman who needed something other than laser beams.

When Clark finally restores his memories following his resurrection and a trip down memory lane through the Kent farm, he spends a beautiful moment with the two people most important to him: Lois Lane and Martha Kent. As he expresses his gratitude to be alive again by playing with a butterfly, the scene is almost surreal in its warmth.

This is the first time Clark and Martha were reunited since he came looking for her advice one quiet Smallville evening before the Capitol hearing in Batman v Superman. The scene takes its time, allowing the moment to settle. These kinds of scenes, especially Clark's connection with nature, are part of what makes Henry Cavill so accurate to Superman's source material.

Henry Allen fears that his son's drive to liberate him from prison is holding him back in life, working multiple jobs to pay for a law degree instead of finding his own way. He believes Barry has potential that deserves better than for Barry to waste it on a potentially fruitless effort to undo a conviction.

Following the climactic final battle, Barry returns to his father to reveal he got a job in a crime lab, a real job for his own sake, with the potential of building a successful career. While a small step, it is huge for Henry Allen, who despaired that his son was wasting his life. He is utterly ecstatic and filled with pride that his son is now moving ahead, coinciding with Flash's character development in the DCEU.

NEXT: 7 Creators Influenced By Zack Snyder's Justice League Trilogy

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Every late-night talk show host has, at one point or another, made a cameo in a television show or movie as themselves. They are often seen interviewing guests as if their characters were real and not the actors who play them. In one recent small screen instance, for example, Jimmy Fallon appeared in the Peacock series Girls5eva, interviewing the women from the fictional former girl group.

RELATED: The Most Popular Daytime Talk Shows Ranked, According To IMDb 

But many of the most popular late-night talk show hosts have also dabbled in acting, appearing in projects as characters, not themselves. James Corden, for example, was a sitcom star in the U.K. before he began hosting his late show in America. And Stephen Colbert was also in Girls5eva, but playing a character, a record producer named Alf Musik. But there have been movie appearances, too.

10 Jimmy Fallon - Fever Pitch (2005)

Fallon has made mention of his failed movie career many times on both The Tonight Show and his previous talk show, often in reference to the fact that it was through the 2005 movie Fever Pitch that he met his now wife.

Fallon starred alongside Drew Barrymore in the romantic comedy, which was produced by the company Barrymore owns alongside Nancy Juvonen. She introduced the two and the rest is history. The movie itself was a remake of the 1997 British film of the same name, which itself was based on a 1992 book, with a focus on baseball instead of soccer.

9 James Corden - Cats (2019)

Some fans don't realize that while Corden is best known in North America as host of The Late Late Show with James Corden, he was actually known in the U.K. for his acting and writing. He is most notable for the BBC sitcom Gavin & Stacey, but James Corden has also had plenty of other great roles.

He has continued to act alongside hosting, including voicing the title character in the Peter Rabbit movie in 2018 and its 2021 sequel. He also starred in the 2019 musical fantasy film Cats, based on the Andrew Lloyd Webber stage musical. He played Bustopher Jones and was in good company with a star-studded cast that also included Dame Judi Dench, Idris Elba, Jennifer Hudson, Rebel Wilson, Taylor Swift, and others.

8 Jimmy Kimmel (PAW Patrol: The Movie)

Kimmel has joked many times on his long-running late night talk show Jimmy Kimmel Live! how even his voice acting role in PAW Patrol: The Movie didn't impress his young children. Indeed, Kimmel, who rose to fame as co-host of The Man Show, fittingly voiced the character of Marty Muckraker, a news anchor at the fictional Adventure City News Network.

RELATED: Every Late Night Talk Show, Ranked By IMDb Score

This isn't the extent of his voice acting: often known for voicing dog characters, Kimmel also lent his voice acting talents to Garfield: The Movie, and was the voice of Death's Dog in an episode of Family Guy.

7 Jimmy Fallon (Taxi)

While Fallon truly rose to fame once he was cast on Saturday Night Live, he also tried his hands at movies while he was working on the sketch comedy series. Once such film was the buddy cop movie alongside Queen Latifah called Taxi.

A remake of the French film, Taxi wasn't received well by critics, but Fallon still went forward with Fever Pitch, his second major role. The movie flops were a hit to his self-esteem, but Fallon finally found his stride as a late-night talk show host and eventually got the opportunity to take over the illustrious The Tonight Show.

6 John Oliver (The Lion King)

John Oliver has done some acting in his time before taking over the political late-night talk show circuit with Last Week Tonight, which is the top-ranked late night talk show, according to IMDb. Most recently, he voiced the character of Zazu in The Lion King in 2019. The computer animated musical drama by Jon Favreau had a star-studded voice cast that also included the likes of Donald Glover, Seth Rogen, and Chiwetel Ejiofor. Zazu was a hornbill, majordomo and King of the Pride Lands.

Oliver has had a few other voice acting roles in movies, including as Vanity Smurf in The Smurfs, The Smurfs 2, and The Smurfs: The Legend of Smurfy Hollow, and as Steve in Wonder Park. He also played a character named Dick Pants in 2008's The Love Guru.

5 Jon Stewart (Big Daddy)

Stewart, of course, is known for his long-time award-winning tenure on Comedy Central satirical news show The Daily Show. But he had been acting long before that.

RELATED: 10 Of The Longest Running Talk Shows Of All Time 

One of his most memorable early roles was in the Adam Sandler movie Big Daddy, where he played Kevin Garrity, the roommate of Sandler's lead character Sonny and the biological father of the young boy who Sonny ends up caring for to prove to his ex-girlfriend that he can be responsible.

4 Chelsea Handler (This Means War)

Handler is a veteran within the stand-up comedy circuit, and hosted her own late-night talk show, Chelsea Lately, for many years, from 2007-2015. She then went on to create her own documentaries for Netflix.

Within her busy schedule, however, Handler has also made time to appear in a handful of movies. One such role was a small one in the movie This Means War, which starred Reese Witherspoon, Chris Pine, and Tom Hardy. She had a small role as Trish, Witherspoon's character's best friend.

3 Arsenio Hall (Coming To America)

While Hall's successful career as a late-night talk show host back in the '90s, The Arsenio Hall Show, had people chattering that he could be the successor to Johnny Carson for The Tonight Show, Hall is almost as well-known for his supporting role in the 1988 movie Coming to America, in which he starred with comedic icon Eddie Murphy.

Hall and Murphy reunited to star in the sequel movie Coming to America 2, which was released in 2021. It remains one of the best movies in which actors play multiple characters.

2 Jay Leno (Cars)

It's no surprise given his distinctive voice that Leno has done many voice acting roles in animated films. But one of the most notable ones is from the massive hit movie Cars from 2006. He didn't play himself, but he did play a talking car named Jay Limo in a cameo role. He has also voiced many other characters, including Fast Tony in Ice Age: The Meltdown (2006), Jack O'Lantern in Scooby-Doo! and the Goblin King (2008), and King Malbert in Igor (2008).

Leno, of course, is one of the most successful and well-known late-night talk show hosts, having headed up The Jay Leno Show for many years, as well as original (and returning) successor to The Tonight Show before and after Conan O'Brien until Fallon officially took over.

1 Seth Meyers (Nick And Norah's Infinite Playlist)

 

Meyers was cast member on Saturday Night Live, but most notably co-host of the Weekend Update segment. He was also one of the best SNL cast members who debuted in the 2000s, and was also a writer for the show. But fans might not realize that he had done acting beyond his sketch comedy roles on that series.

While Meyers mostly had minor roles beyond cameos as himself in movies like The Interview, he did play a small character in Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist. His character didn't even have a name, though: he was simply credited as "drunk guy in Yugo." He also had small roles in Journey to the Center of the Earth and Spring Breakdown. Meyers, of course, currently hosts Late Night with Seth Meyers.

NEXT: Oprah & 9 Of The Longest-Running TV Hosts, Ranked By Years Hosted 

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The Marvel Cinematic Universe has become quite adept at building up the stardom of those who play its most famous superheroes, elevating the likes of Chris Evans and Chris Pratt to action hero superstardom. However, many superheroes of the MCU are also portrayed by actors and actresses with lengthy and prestigious resumes.

RELATED: 10 Oscar Winners You Didn't Realize Played Marvel Side Characters

This includes several who have actually managed to obtain the holy grail of film awards: an Oscar. This being the case, it’s no surprise that the characters they play end up being some of the most fascinating in this shared universe.

Tilda Swinton has earned a reputation as one of her generation’s finest living actresses, playing a wide variety of characters, from evil sorceresses to gender-bending time travelers. She earned an Oscar for her role of Karen Crowder in Michael Clayton, and in the MCU she is famous for playing the Ancient One in Doctor Strange.

The Ancient One is a being of immense power and mystery. Swinton brings her signature strangeness to this part, somehow making the Ancient One both compelling and more than a little frightening.

Like Swinton, Natalie Portman has earned herself quite a reputation as an actress, appearing in a wide range of cinematic genres, including science-fiction, space opera, drama, and biopic. Unsurprisingly, she has also been nominated for numerous awards for her acting ability.

She ultimately took home the statuette for best actress for her astonishing performance in Darren Aronovsky’s Black Swan. In the MCU, she has made the most out of the character Jane Foster, and she is slated to take on more importance as the Mighty Thor in next year's Thor: Love and Thunder.

There are few actresses who have achieved quite the level of superstardom as Angelia Jolie. She has repeatedly proven her versatility as a star, and she has been in numerous types of roles, earning an Academy Award for Girl, Interrupted.

RELATED: Angelina Jolie's 15 Best Movies (According To IMDb)

Her role as Lara Croft in Tomb Raider, however, may be the role that has most defined her stardom, and it helps to explain why she was chosen to play the character Thena in the upcoming Eternals. Fans will once again get to see Jolie step in front of the camera as an action star.

The various movies centered on Thor tend to have a bit of a lighter touch than the other parts of the MCU, but there is also a bit of a sinister strain underneath the humor. For instance, Matt Damon is slated to reprise his role as an actor portraying Loki in the upcoming Thor: Love and Thunder.

It's a bit of a stretch - he's only an actor playing Loki, who is more of an anti-hero than a hero -  but he is a well-respected actor and has many nominations and awards under his belt, including an Oscar for screenwriting for Good Will Hunting.

Gwyneth Paltrow is a bit of Hollywood royalty, being the daughter of director Bruce Paltrow and actress Blythe Danner. However, she is also a formidable acting talent in her own right, as evidenced by her lengthy resume and the critical praise that her performances often receive.

Among her many accolades, she won an Academy Award for best actress for Shakespeare in Love. Fans of the MCU, however, know her best as Pepper Potts, the longtime love interest of Iron Man.

Despite her relative youth, Lupita Nyong’o has still managed to build up quite a list of acting credits, and she often receives critical acclaim for the powerful intensity that she brings to almost every role that she creates.

She received the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in 12 Years a Slave, and she has become similarly acclaimed for her role as Nakia in Black Panther, one of that film’s most popular characters.

Brie Larson has a well-deserved reputation for bringing out the humanity and empathy of her often-troubled characters, as can be seen in her role in Room, the film for which she won an Academy Award for Best Actress.

RELATED: 5 Actors Confirmed For The Marvels (So Far)

She brought that considerable talent to her role as Captain Marvel, one of the later additions to the MCU and one that proved to be crucial to the Avengers as they sought to defeat Thanos and restore the lives of half of the universe.

There are few actors who have quite the reputation and resume of Michael Douglas who, like Gwyneth Paltrow, is a bit of Hollywood royalty (his father was the famous screen legend Kirk Douglas).

In the MCU, he is most famous for playing the character of Hank Pym, the man who invented the Ant-Man suit and would eventually become a mentor to the man who succeeded him as the wearer of the suit, Paul Rudd’s Scott Lang.

Taika Waititi has established himself as a versatile person in Hollywood, earning him acclaim for his roles both behind and in front of the camera and in both film and television.

He won an Academy Award for his screenplay for Jojo Rabbit, and he has received several other nominations for both his work. In the MCU, he’s best known for portraying the character Korg, who joins the Avengers as they attempt to defeat Thanos.

Daniel Kaluuya has earned quite a lot of respect as an actor, both for his haunting performance in the horror film Get Out, as well as his more recent role as Fred Hampton in Judas and the Black Messiah, becoming one of the youngest people to win the prestigious acting award.

Among fans of the MCU, he has earned a lot of popularity for playing the character of W’Kabi, one of the movie’s more interesting characters. Though he initially supports T’Challa, he betrays him before finally surrendering during the final battle.

Russell Crowe has a formidable reputation in Hollywood, having acted in several high-budget blockbuster epics. In one of those, Gladiator, he played the title character Maximus, the man who rebels against an emperor before perishing in the arena.

It was the role that earned him an Oscar, and he has gone on to perform in several more high-profile epic films, and he is slated to portray the character of Zeus in the upcoming Thor: Love and Thunder.

NEXT: Russell Crowe's 10 Most Memorable Roles, Ranked From Most Villanous To Most Heroic

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Charles Xavier created the X-Men for two reasons. One was to teach young mutants how to use their powers safely. The second was to create a team that could act as heroes to ease the relationship between mutants and the humans who fear them. However, there are several X-Men who have been anything but heroic in their lives.

RELATED: The First 10 Supervillains The X-Men Ever Fought In Comics

The X-Men have always had to battle with anti-mutant bigotry, and this has caused some of them to act like the villains they usually fight. The mutants have cheated, stolen, killed, and broken all kinds of laws, things they could usually set out to bring down villainous mutants for doing. At the end of the day, they are still heroes, but many X-Men members have been one step away from turning to the dark side.

Beast was, at one time, a loveable and enthusiastic founding member of the X-Men. However, he grew darker as time went on. There was even an alternate world's version of Beast, known as Dark Beast, who conducted disturbing and unethical experiments, having turned completely evil.

The main timeline Beast is getting close to that in Krakoa. He has committed many crimes and simply told Professor X not to ask questions he doesn't want answers for. Beast has also become ruthless, sending mutants to their deaths and explaining his actions by saying they can be resurrected, ignoring the pain he is putting them through. There might not be a more immoral X-Men member in Krakoa right now.

Magneto started out as the X-Men's archenemy along with the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, so it is no surprise that he has done a lot of terrible things over his career. However, he has also joined the X-Men and served as their leader on several occasions. In the 1980s, he took over as the leader when Charles Xavier left Earth, but then reverted to a villain after that.

Currently, Magneto is a hero once again, serving on the Quiet Council in Krakoa. He is one of the only people other than Charles Xavier to know the secret behind the new mutant society. However, Magneto is also not above turning back the clock. He has betrayed almost every other mutant on the X-Men team and, in his most villainous moment, ripped the adamantium from Wolverine's skeleton.

Professor X is supposed to be the man who set the template for how all mutants should act. The problem is that Xavier has not always practiced what he preached. As the X-Men's main leader, Charles Xavier has done more villainous things over his life than most of the X-Men combined.

He manipulates the mind of anyone he wants, even completely rearranging the memories of Wolverine to force him to join the X-Men in the first place. He joined the Illuminati, which was responsible for pulling strings behind the backs of all Earth's heroes. He shut down Magneto's brain once, which unleashed the monster Onslaught into the world. Even now, as the main man in Krakoa, he has manipulated the world to bow to his country's whims.

Emma Frost was another villain who later became a member of the X-Men. When she joined, it was because she realized that Charles Xavier's ideals were the right ones, and she soon became a trusted ally. She even romanced Cyclops at one point, and the two led the X-Men to great heights.

RELATED: 10 Best X-Men Comic Issues Of The 1970s

However, while leading the X-Men, she did something unforgivable. She faked Cyclops' death to send the mutants into a war with the Inhumans. Her actions caused many mutants and Inhumans to almost lose their lives, and she went on the run when both sides learned the truth.

When Wolverine joined the X-Men, he was fresh from working for a secret government agency in Canada, and before that, he was part of the Weapon X program in the United States. After Wolverine joined the X-Men, he did everything he could to transition into a hero and curb his violent streak.

However, Wolverine has crossed the line more than once. He killed his own son Daken when he learned that Daken was fated to do terrible things in the future. In "Age of Apocalypse," one of the most destructive alternate X-Men timelines, Wolverine became the ultimate evil dictator. In the "Old Man Logan" storyline, he killed every member of the X-Men.

Cyclops committed the ultimate sin when he was a leader in the X-Men. He murdered his mentor and father figure, Professor Xavier. This happened in Avengers vs. X-Men and it happened because Cyclops and his teammates wanted to allow the Phoenix Force to return to Earth, with him and several teammates possessed by it.

When Professor X tried to end the war between the two teams, Cyclops murdered him in cold blood. Cyclops then lost the Phoenix Force and went to prison, where he ended up as a martyr to disenfranchised mutants all over the world.

Out of all the members of the X-Men, the one who committed the most heinous atrocity was Jean Grey, the former Marvel Girl. Jean was a founding member of the team and was its heart and soul for many years. However, after a mission in space went wrong, she returned to Earth with the Phoenix Force controlling her.

RELATED: 10 Best X-Men Comic Issues of the 1980s

This is when Jean committed the ultimate sin. With the Dark Phoenix rising inside her and the Hellfire Club pushing her to the brink, Jean set out and destroyed an entire galaxy. Billions died in the attack, and Jean ended up giving her own life to atone for this villainous act.

Angel was the one X-Men member that seemed to seem the least likely to ever become a villain. Not only was he an "angel" with big, white wings allowing him flight, but he could hide the wings under a shirt and go on as if he was a non-mutant human. This changed after Angel was attacked and lost his wings.

In what readers thought was Angel taking his own life, his close friend Cameron Hodge betrayed him and blew up a helicopter he was on. Apocalypse brought him back as Archangel, and Angel had a change of heart. More than once, Archangel murdered anti-mutant terrorists in cold blood, stepping over a line that the X-Men swore never to approach.

Rogue started out her career as a villain. Rased by Mystique and Destiny, she was a villain who battled the Avengers. She actually used her mutant abilities to strip Carol Danvers of her Captain Marvel powers and much of her memory, destroying the superhero's life for many years.

After becoming a hero, Rogue changed and atoned for those sins. However, there was a point when she stepped over the line. On a new team of X-Men and Avengers members, Rogue found herself teaming with Scarlet Witch, who has previously stripped most mutants of their powers. At one point, Rogue mistakenly thought Scarlet Witch betrayed them, and with no evidence to back it up, she murdered Wanda in cold blood.

Gambit did one of the most villainous things in X-Men history, and he didn't even know he was doing it. Mister Sinister had built up a group called the Acolytes and forced Gambit to help him. Without knowing the reason for it, Gambit helped lead Sinister's team into the tunnels under New York City.

This is the event that led to the Morlock Massacre. Gambit realized what he did and hid it from his teammates, even his lover, Rogue. When the X-Men learned he was responsible, they banished him from the team.

NEXT: 10 Best X-Men Comic Issues of the 1990s

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The Fantastic Four count some of the greatest supervillains in Marvel Comics as their enemies, like Doctor Doom or Galactus. The majority of them are men, but a number of their adversaries in the last sixty years have been women. Some are fairly well known to comics readers, while others are a bit more obscure.

RELATED: Fantastic Four’s Main Comic Book Villains From Most Laughable To Coolest

Allegiances often shift in comics - even Doctor Doom has worked with the FF at times - so it should be no surprise that some of their female enemies have been allied with the team on occasion. But all of them are powerful and potential foes for the Fantastic Four when they finally make their debut in the MCU in the coming years.

10 Karisma

Karisma is a fairly obscure villain from the classic run by John Byrne, who was responsible for some of the best Fantastic Four story arcs in the 80s. Her primary power was the ability to control men via a strange and powerful invention.

Karisma ingrained a special radioactive isotope in makeup products that she designed, which then allowed her to make men do whatever she wanted. The product didn't work on women, though, making her plans for criminal enterprise extremely vulnerable to the Invisible Woman.

9 Psycho-Woman

Fantastic Four fans are likely familiar with Psycho-Man, but may not be aware of his daughter, Psycho-Woman. In Fantastic Four Annual #32, she sought revenge against the team for their battles against her father.

Though her powers of emotional manipulation were essentially the same as his, there were some key differences. Her emotional focus was envy, disgust, and indifference, whereas Psycho-Man preyed on fear, hate, and doubt. She could also change her size at will, but it didn't help her achieve her goal of revenge.

8 Thundra

Thundra came back in time from the 23rd century to fight The Thing in single combat since she thought he was the strongest man on Earth. She is incredibly strong herself, easily his equal, and though she doesn't have his rocky exterior, she is almost as invulnerable.

Thundra has superhuman speed, stamina, and reflexes, all of which make her one of the greatest martial artists in Marvel Comics. Even with her superior combat skills, she also uses a number of weapons, including her favorite instrument, a linked chain.

7 Titania

Titania has been a member of the Frightful Four and a fairly regular antagonist of the Fantastic Four since her debut in 1985's Secret Wars event. She is incredibly strong, strong enough to take on The Thing and She-Hulk, who has since become her primary nemesis.

Titania is also extremely durable and highly reflexive, making her a challenging opponent in any fight. Her many battles with She-Hulk comprise a number of awesome storylines that the upcoming She-Hulk MCU series could adapt, especially since the character is slated to appear.

6 Lucia von Bardas

Lucia von Bardas is the prime minister of the fictional Marvel Comics country of Latveria, who rose to power after Doctor Doom was pushed out of the country. Augmented with cybernetic implants created by Doom, she's a powerful antagonist who has been a thorn for both the Fantastic Four and S.H.I.E.L.D.

RELATED: 10 Things Only Comic Book Fans Know About Doctor Doom & The Fantastic Four's Rivalry

Her implants allow her to fly and generate energy shields, making her secure against most forms of attack. She is susceptible to hacking though, as both Ironheart and Doom himself have demonstrated in combat against her.

5 Medusa

Medusa is one of the most powerful Inhumans and has been an enemy of the Fantastic Four at times. While a member of the original Frightful Four, she used her copious red hair as he primary weapon.

Through psionic control, she can manipulate her long, flowing hair into whips, lashes, or rope. Her hair is incredibly strong, with the tensile strength to lift an enormous weight. It's also highly resistant to damage of any kind. Because she's an Inhuman, Medusa is also super strong, agile, and durable.

4 Malice

Malice is a psionic entity that took over the mind of the Invisible Woman, with the unwanted assistance of the Psycho-Man and his soldier, Hate-Monger. Since she was in control of Sue Storm, Malice had all of Sue's powers at her disposal.

Not only could Malice turn invisible, but she was also able to make others invisible, generate force fields, and in some cases create invisible projectiles. Because of this, she was very difficult to defeat, and Sue Storm repeatedly fought her for control for years.

3 Nebula / Ravonna Renslayer

Comic book fans know Ravonna Renslayer is the lover of Kang The Conqueror. They may not know she was also an enemy of the Fantastic Four. While impersonating Nebula, she manipulated the team into going into the timestream in a massive gamble to achieve the power to destroy Kang.

RELATED: 10 Most Shocking Deaths In Marvel Comics

Though Ravonna's powers and abilities are limited in nature, she was a master of disguise. Her ambitions also might be the greatest of any of the Fantastic Four's enemies. She very nearly succeeded in destroying the team by bringing them face to face with Galactus and the first use of the Ultimate Nullifier in Marvel Comics.

2 Nova

Nova isn't entirely a villain of the Fantastic Four, but as a herald of Galactus, she's inherently at odds with them. Frankie Raye was the Human Torch's girlfriend for a time, but then she accepted an offer by Galactus to become his herald.

She gained the Power Cosmic and assisted him without any reservations in his quest to consume worlds. With the Power Cosmic, she was able to fly at the speed of light, project devastating blasts of cosmic energy equal to that of solar flares, and manipulate cosmic energy at will.

1 Lyja

Lyja is a tragic figure who betrayed the Fantastic Four. A Skrull in disguise, she impersonated Alicia Masters for years in the comics, using her natural ability to shapeshift to spy on the team for her masters. She also has superhuman strength, agility, and stamina. Her Skrull physiology also includes wings, allowing her to fly.

Though she resisted her mission and did genuinely care for the team, she nevertheless carried it out, evidence of her focus and determination, both powerful assets that nearly brought down the Fantastic Four.

NEXT: 10 Strangest Alternate Realities From Marvel Comics What If..? Series

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NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope has clicked yet another cosmic wonder — an interaction event of two galaxies that are so closely intertwined that they are collectively labeled as a single entity. Galactic interactions are not a rare phenomenon. In fact, a large number of galaxies show some form of interaction either with their satellites or on a much larger scale with other galaxies. The latter category can include events such as collisions that end up in a merger of galaxies or lead to bursts of star formation.

In scenarios of a collision and eventual merger, the larger galaxy might retain its shape after gobbling up the much smaller galaxy. The gravitational interaction between galaxies often leads to the formation of a larger irregular galaxy, but elliptical galaxies are also known to form as a result. Some of the best examples of galactic interactions are the Messler 81 group (includes the dominant M81 galaxy interacting with two smaller NGC 3034 and NGC 3077 galaxies) and the Cartwheel group which consists of four spiral galaxies in a beautiful ring outline.

Related: NASA Spots Galaxies From The Beginning Of Time, Here's Why They Died

The image captures by the Hubble Space Telescope shows the entity called Arp 91 which is located over 100 million light-years away from the Earth. Arp 91 consists of two spiral galaxies named NGC 5953 and NGC 5954. In the image above, NGC 5953 is the lower one with higher brightness and a more intact spiral shape. The oval-shaped galaxy at the top is NGC 5954. Interestingly, NASA notes that both the galaxies are spiral, but their shape appears oddly distorted due to their orientation in space with respect to Earth.

A quick glance at the image suggests that the oval-shaped NGC 5954 is extending one of its arms towards NGC 5954 due to the strong gravitational interaction between them. Scientists believe that galaxies form arms because of their rotation around a central axis and another factor called density waves. These arms happen to be an active site of star formation and usually appear brighter because of the stars inhabiting those regions. Interestingly, a recent study revealed that one of the Milky Way’s arms is broken.

As per a research paper titled ‘Photometric and Kinematic Traces of an Interaction’ that appeared in the Astronomical Society of the Pacific, the two galaxies in Arp 91 system are separated by a distance of 5.8 kiloparsecs and have prominent star-forming regions. But based on Infrared Astronomical Satellite (IRAS) data, NGC 5953 has a much higher rate of star formation per unit area compared to its interacting neighbor. Interestingly, NGC 5953 is said to fall under the Class II Seyfert galaxies, which are characterized by their bright core that is known as an active galactic nucleus (AGN) and happen to be one of the brightest sources of electromagnetic radiation in the cosmos. Interestingly, the Hubble telescope recently captured an image of one such Seyfert galaxy that looks like a giant cosmic eye with a bright center.

Next: Hellish Exoplanet With Iron-Raining Clouds Is Hotter Than Previously Thought

Source: NASA, Astronomical Society of the Pacific

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In a new video, broken PlayStation 4 consoles were stacked in a tower to raise awareness about an ongoing electronics issue: the right to repair. The fight for this right expands to everything from gaming consoles (like the PlayStation and Xbox) to smartphones. Even US President Joe Biden recently supported the right to repair, but it is important to note that this right already exists in one of the largest industries in the world: the automotive industry. There are laws in the United States that require automotive companies to make sure various parts are available to consumers, as well as instruction manuals on how everything works. This right gives consumers the freedom to make repairs to their vehicles themselves. But some major electronic companies still don’t work the same way, and even though the PlayStation 5's functions were revealed by a patent recently, users still struggle to repair their own machines.

The right to repair is important for many reasons, like the fact that it helps prevent tons of perfectly functional products from sitting in a landfill. A major problem with many consoles and smartphones is that it is often much more lucrative for a company to encourage consumers to simply buy a new product than it is to sell parts and instructions on how to make the device last longer. Any console gamer will remember the Xbox 360 and the dreaded red ring of death, something that is now being mimicked by Xbox One's black screen of death. This red ring was terrifying not only because it meant the Xbox wouldn’t work, but also because there was nothing the consumer could reasonably do about it, other than pack it in a box, send it away to Microsoft, and wait.

YouTube channel TronicsFix posted a video a few days ago seeing just how many broken PS4s could be stacked on top of each other. TronicsFix brought sixty-two broken PS4s to the film location, explaining that every one of these consoles could be fixed if the parts and the instructions were available to the average consumer. The tower manages to reach forty-two PS4s before an unfortunate gust of wind causes the consoles to come crashing down. Even without stacking all of the PS4s that were obtained, TronicsFix still claimed it might be a world record.

Watch the PS4 stacking video on YouTube here.

Between stacking more and more PS4s, the video also discusses the right to repair. TronicsFix points out that it was easy to replace and install a part of his tractor through the manufacturer, but impossible to do so with a PS4 without turning to independent online sources. The importance of the right to repair comes from the consumer’s ability to choose how to repair the products that they have purchased. Also, the right to repair could save time and money. Modifying consoles is a tricky situation; for instance, Valve discouraged opening the Steam Deck in a recent video, citing potential fires alongside the more traditional voiding of warranty, but many believe the benefits outweigh the potential costs.

Gaming consoles are hugely expensive products that are important to anyone who owns them, and it seems wrong to leave so much ownership still in the hands of huge companies like Microsoft and Sony. Hopefully, going forward, laws will be implemented that will allow consumers to be more informed about their consoles, and perhaps whatever the next red rings of death are won’t be quite as frightening as they once were, whether they appear on PlayStation or Xbox consoles.

Source: TronicsFix/YouTube

As the competition heats up on The Voice season 21, this has been another eventful week of news stories, from coach Ariana Grande getting mixed reactions to Ed Sheeran joining the show as a mentor. With the introduction of Ariana as a new coach, The Voice season 21 premiered on Monday, September 20 on NBC. Since then, dozens of aspiring singers have performed in their Blind Auditions for a chance to join one of the coaches' teams.

Alas, it's been harder than ever for coaches Kelly Clarkson, Blake Shelton, and John Legend to convince singers to join their respective teams now that they're up against Ariana - one of the biggest pop stars in the world at the moment. This season, the coaches were once again tasked with filling up their initial teams with 12 contestants. With that said, it is important to note that this is only the first phase of The Voice season 21. There's still a lot of competition ahead of us.

This was an important week for The Voice given that the upcoming rounds were kicked off and new additions to the show were announced. The fans have also been very active on social media as they share their opinions about the contestants who are moving forward in the competition versus singers who didn't land a spot in any of the teams. So, it's time to break down all of the biggest events from the week.

After six episodes that aired over the course of three weeks on NBC, all of the Blind Auditions on The Voice season 21 are now officially over. Each coach currently has 12 contestants in their respective teams. Noteworthy singers include those that got all four coaches to turn around for them in the Blind Auditions, such as Girl Named Tom, Gymani, Wendy Moten, Holly Forbes, Carson Peters, Brittany Bree, and Aaron Hines. All of the singers will now be moving into the Battles round. Only eight singers are expected to survive the Battles. Then, the remaining contestants will face off in the subsequent Knockouts round.

A very big moment from this week was Ariana turning around her red chair for David Vogel's Blind Audition. David sang Ariana's song "breathin'", which made her feel particularly compelled to turn around for him. Alas, she was the only coach to turn around for him. As a result, The Voice fans had mixed reactions to Ariana turning her chair for David. These viewers argue that Ari probably felt guilty about not turning for a singer performing a song of hers, but that this Blind Audition was probably not worthy of a spot on Team Ariana. With that said, it should be noted that this is just a matter of personal preferences. Ariana probably heard something special in David's voice.

Now that the Blind Auditions are behind us, The Voice season 21 will move forward to the Battles round. In August 2021, four different advisors were announced for each team. Team Ariana will have Kristin Chenoweth, Team Legend will have Camila Cabello, Team Kelly will have Jason Aldean, and Team Blake will have Dierks Bentley. After the Battles, the contestants will move on to the Knockouts round. This week, pop superstar Ed Sheeran was cast as the Mega Mentor for the Knockouts. Ed will be singlehandedly mentoring all of the singers left on the show, so he'll collaborate with all four coaches.

Amy and Tammy Slaton have built an enormous fanbase thanks to their appearances on 1000-lb Sisters, but the reality stars haven't always had a perfect relationship with their fans. Before the Slaton sisters had their own TV series, Amy and Tammy were known to get caught up in controversy every now and then. Here's everything there is to know about one major scandal that caused 1000-lb Sisters fans to accuse Amy of fraud.

Long before Amy and Tammy started their weight loss journey on TLC, the sisterly duo was prominent on YouTube. Amy began her career as an entertainer with her YouTube channel back in January 2011 and has garnered over 48 million views on her channel as of this writing. Typically, Amy's videos would consist of challenges, makeup tutorials, and storytimes. Amy is known for her outrageous stories which include her explaining the incident that led to her arrest in 2010. Alas, one story of Amy's from 2015 didn't go over so well as it ultimately led fans to believe that she was scamming them for their money.

Related: 1000-Lb. Sisters: What We Know About Jerry Sykes' Ex-Wife Kia

In a now-deleted vlog shared by Amy, which was re-posted by YouTube user Primink (video below), the 1000-lb Sisters star emotionally shares: "Yesterday, at 10 a.m., Tammy went into the hospital. She has pneumonia and she can't breathe." Amy reveals more about Tammy's seemingly tragic state while holding back tears. It's no secret that Tammy has struggled with her health, but Amy's video takes a turn when she asks her millions of viewers for some financial assistance. Amy continues, "If y'all could donate a penny, nickel, dime, I would be so happy." Amy then allegedly set up a GoFundMe for her fans to send her money to pay for Tammy's funeral expenses. Specifically, Amy wanted to purchase an extra-large coffin for Tammy. As 1000-lb Sisters audiences know well, however, Tammy never passed away from the illness that Amy convinced fans was sure to take her life.

While the Slaton sisters' fans were happy to hear that Tammy was still alive, those that donated to Amy's GoFundMe page felt bamboozled. Although the GoFundMe page was taken down by Amy after news got out of Tammy's survival, Primink claims that over $1,000 was raised for the reality star's funeral costs. What's worse, Amy posted a video hanging out with Tammy in their home a couple of days later. In a new video, Tammy looked good as new and didn't show signs of recovery from a drastic battle with pneumonia. While it's unclear what exactly went down with Tammy at the hospital, fans felt lied to by Amy as they were apparently led to believe that Tammy had no road to recovery. If Amy hadn't claimed that her sister was as good as dead, her fans wouldn't have donated money for a coffin the sisters didn't end up needing.

Usually, Amy is the reliable sister that fans rally behind on 1000-lb Sisters, but her past controversy calls her character into question. Although it's possible that Amy believed her sister's life wasn't salvageable, the fans that donated money to the reality star's premature GoFundMe agree that it was wrong of the sister to allegedly take their money for a funeral that never happened. Hopefully, Amy can rekindle a trustworthy relationship with her 1000-lb Sisters fanbase going forward.

Next: 1000-Lb. Sisters: What Tammy Slaton Ate At The Weight Loss Facility

Sources: Amy Slaton/YouTube, Primink/YouTube

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