It is hard to ignore Marvel nowadays. Every several months, a new Marvel movie is showing in theaters and all everyone talks about for a few months. Everyone discusses their favorite heroes and what adventures they will take on next as fan theories begin to emerge.
I am here to talk about the villains. Now, I do not claim to be the biggest Marvel fan or know everything about Marvel. Most of my knowledge is from the movies and some comics I have read in the past (mostly stuff in the Spiderverse). I am particularly focusing on the portrayal of the movie villains Marvel has been producing. It is hard not to relate to them and understand where their ideas and plans stem from. They are no longer villains with your cookie cutter plans, but with thought out ideas that in some cases, make sense. These are the villains I am truly afraid of.
The villains that come to mind are Vulture ("Spiderman: Homecoming"), Killmonger ("Black Panther"), and Thanos (overall MCU). I am going to try not to spoil Thanos's reasoning too much in this, but you have been warned - the other two are fair game.
Adrian Toomes, aka the Vulture, is just a father who had his main lively hood taken from him. He needs to support his family, but the Stark corporation ended that, causing him to find other means. Through advance alien technology, he slowly transforms into the Vulture. During this time, Peter Parker is also on the rise as Spiderman, who happens to like his daughter. This interesting dynamic creates a sense of realness to this villain. It is not some crazy psychopath, but a father who is willing to do anything to keep his family afloat.
See also: Tom Holland Is The Best Spider-Man Ever, Don't Try To Argue With Me
Even Eric Killmonger from "Black Panther" is a very understandable villain. Having seen some of the corruptness within Wakanda, he sets it out upon himself to make, what he believes, Wakanda a nation for his people a great place and a place for his ancestors to fight back. He wants to open it up and help those oppressed around the world through the means of warfare. To do this, he needs to overthrow T'Challa and become king of Wakanda. After accomplishing this, he moves forward with his mission, only to meet his end. However, T'Challa does realize where Killmonger's thinking stems from and understands his motives. This aided his decision in opening Wakanda to the world and aiding those of African descent.
Thanos has been MCU's largest villain for the past several movies. Everything has been building up for the last 10 years to "Avengers: Infinity War." After seeing the movie, I hate that I can understand his motive. It makes too much sense to what he is trying to accomplish which may lead him to become Marvel's greatest villain. Everything he is trying to achieve and the sacrifices he has made are justified by his own thought process. He is truly doing what he believes is the only option left in the universe, despite the unwavering backlash.
This realness of these Marvel villains is frightening.
Each one believes this is the only way to accomplish their goal, whether it is to support their family, bring aid to those who are oppressed or solve an issue within the universe, is justifiable. In my humble opinion, these reasons can be justified. Even though they are not the best choice, there are just trying to do the right thing, even if it means lives may be lost.
A good movie villain is not one that is just kill-happy and insane, a good villain is one that makes you sit there and realize they can appear in our world, the real world.
