10 Underrated DC Villains Who Aren’t Batman Rogues

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DC Comics is home to some of the most popular and iconic villains of all time: The Joker, Lex Luthor, and even the Animal-Vegetable-Mineral Man. But for every well-known adversary, there are dozens more who remain in the shadows for various reasons yet are no less deserving of recognition.

None of these villains are still waiting for their big defining story, nor are they ones who’ve somehow fallen out of public favor. These are adversaries who are just as iconic as any enemy in the Dark Knight’s rogue’s gallery. For one reason or another, they’re simply not receiving the attention that they deserve.

10

The Ultra-Humanite

First appearance: Action Comics #13 (June 1939)

Bearing the honor and privilege of being the first true supervillain Superman ever faced, the Ultra-Humanite is often overlooked in discussions of the character’s long history. Originally from Earth-2, the world of Golden Age DC stories, the Ultra-Humanite was designed as Superman’s opposite: physically disabled but armed with a ruthless intellect, which he used to menace the world repeatedly. In the 1981 Justice League/Justice Society team-up, he transferred his consciousness into the more distinct form of an albino gorilla, combining brawn with his considerable brains.

Much like a shapeshifter, some of the best Ultra-Humanite stories feature the reveal that he has been closer to the action and the heroes than it initially appeared, positioning him perfectly to strike. The Elseworlds story JSA: The Golden Age, written by James Robinson, offers a near-perfect blueprint for how Ultra-Humanite’s presence can haunt a narrative, even when he isn’t directly visible. A modern reinvention of Superman’s first supervillain, especially within a new universe like the Absolute Universe, could serve as the ideal testing ground for his reintroduction.

9

The Toyman

First appearance: Action Comics #64 (September 1943)

Winslow Schott, the original Toyman, has faced an identity crisis over the last few decades. Debuting in the 1940s as a genius inventor who used toys for crime, Schott received a chilling makeover in the 1990s with Superman: The Animated Series, which reimagined him as a diminutive psychopath wearing a doll mask. The second Toyman, Jack Nimball, who is now largely forgotten, introduced the jester costume seen in Challenge of the Super Friends. The third incarnation, Hiro Okamura, is a brilliant ally to superheroes based in Japan.

Since the 1990s, when the character was reimagined with a darker edge in the comics, various Toyman-like characters have emerged in other media. Cosmo Krank, the Toymaster, appeared in the 2004 The Batman animated series. Batman: The Brave and the Bold introduced Fun Haus, and the related character of the Dollmaker has often served as a Toyman stand-in. With so many off-brand toys cluttering the box, it’s time for the original Toyman to be dusted off, polished, and showcased with a fresh new take.

First appearance: World’s Finest Comics #111 (August 1960)

Due to Batman’s exponential rise in popularity starting in the mid-80s, many characters have been swept into his orbit. Even before this, William Tockman, the original Clock King and a primary antagonist for Green Arrow was repurposed to fight the Dark Knight in the Batman TV series starring Adam West. First appearing in World’s Finest Comics #111 in August 1960, the Clock King initially had little connection to clocks or time beyond his costume, functioning as a fairly standard bank robber.

Like many lower-tier villains of the era, such as Mister Freeze, Clock King was given a fresh reinvention by the Batman: The Animated Series production team. Tockman became Temple Fugate, a meticulous city planner who used his mastery of timing to seek revenge on Gotham City’s mayor. This reinterpretation stuck, with many modern versions of Clock King taking cues from the DCAU. The live-action series Arrow offered another inspired take on Clock King, reimagining him as a cyberterrorist with a knack for systems analysis—a perfect foil for the team’s resident cyber expert, Felicity Smoak.

7

The Parasite

First appearance: Action Comics #340 (August 1966)

The Parasite, once a janitor exposed to radioactive waste and turned into a living void, represents a particular type of comic book character. These characters are well-known enough to regularly appear in animated series or films yet remain confined to their established mold to avoid confusing general audiences. In Parasite’s case, he is a popular Superman villain who has featured in nearly every animated adaptation of the Man of Steel since the 1990s but has rarely evolved beyond his original characterization as an ordinary person transformed by a freak accident.

Some versions of the Parasite are more sympathetic, portraying his transformation as a tragic accident. Others, such as Geoff Johns’ Superman: Secret Origin, show the Parasite to be a truly detestable person prior to his transformation. Many subsequent stories with the character either reinforce that status quo or experiment with change before returning to the familiar, so a deviation from these stories would truly be welcome. One recent adaptation that revitalized the concept came in Superman & Lois, where the second-season villain Ally Allston, a cult leader, uses a mysterious object to drain the power and life force from her followers, like a literal interpretation of a parasite.

6

Gorilla Grodd

First appearance: The Flash #106 (May 1959)

Gorilla Grodd, one of the Flash’s most formidable and terrifying villains, has found himself in nearly every adaptation of the Scarlet Speedster. From his role as a leading member of the Legion of Doom in 1978’s Challenge of the Super Friends to organizing two Secret Societies in the DCAU’s Justice League, Grodd’s presence has been consistent. He’s also been a playable character in Injustice 2 and had several notable appearances in the CW’s extended Arrowverse. But all of these appearances also serve to muddy and cloud the character’s original intentions for going to war with the superheroes: the destruction of the human world and its hold on the natural order.

In the wake of the rebooted Planet of the Apes films, the metaphor of apes as the avatars of the natural order is more powerful than ever. This concept was recently explored in the crossover event where the Justice League has to interact with the Monsterverse’s iterations of Godzilla and Kong, where Grodd views Kong as a god and prays to him as such. Gorilla Grodd has always been a popular villain due to his somewhat theatrical nature and various adaptations. Still, there exists a real opportunity to make him mean something new and terrifying, something that can mean more than just a “big scary gorilla.”

5

Doctor Psycho

First appearance: Wonder Woman#5 (July 1943)

Wonder Woman, both as a character and a brand, holds a unique position in popular culture. She is one of the oldest, most enduring, and most celebrated comic book characters, even once earning the title of a real-life UN ambassador. Despite this, she has been startlingly absent from DC’s expansive adaptations. While Batman and Superman have each enjoyed multiple movie franchises, regardless of their quality, Wonder Woman’s most significant pre-modern adaptation was a 1970s television series. Even today, during a golden age of superhero media, Wonder Woman remains one of the few major DC characters to never have her own animated series or dedicated video game.

This lack of media exposure extends to her rogues’ gallery. Most casual fans, especially those that only engage with the movies, would only point to Ares and the Cheetah, or maybe Doctor Poison, as Wonder Woman’s main villains. However, one of Wonder Woman’s most intriguing and underrated villains, Doctor Psycho, has received just one legitimate adaptation in media. Angry, misogynistic, and possessing a deep Napoleon complex, Doctor Psycho represents almost the perfect opposite of Wonder Woman’s ethos. While she embodies unconditional love and compassion, he rejects the very notion of pure love, with his actions driven by deep-seated hatred and resentment. Exploring this dynamic further in mainstream adaptations could give audiences a fresh and powerful perspective on Wonder Woman’s core ethos and the challenges she faces.

4

Sportsmaster

First appearance: All-American Comics #85 (May 1947)

Lawrence Crock, the Sportsmaster, began as a foe of Alan Scott, the original Green Lantern. Like many villains of his era, Sportsmaster leaned heavily into the gimmick of his name, wielding exploding baseballs, rocket-powered bats, and gadgets tailored for every occasion. A product of the Golden Age of Comics and later assigned to Earth-2, Sportsmaster spent many years in character limbo before making a comeback in the modern era.

For many people of a certain generation, their first introduction to Sportsmaster would have been 2010’s Young Justice, an animated series with a heavier focus on espionage, infiltration, and the emotional well-being of these teenage superspies. Here, Sportsmaster was the enforcer for foes that lived in the shadows. His skillset, combined with his ability to strike like a wraith, positioned him as an anti-Batman, a figure whose gimmicks and gadgets mask his deadly efficiency. Some adaptations have the power to rescue characters from obscurity, and the one-two punch of Young Justice and Stargirl helped bring Sportsmaster back into prominence.

3

Brainiac

First appearance: Action Comics#242 (July 1958)

In the same way that Spider-Man and Batman’s foes reflect different aspects of their personalities, Superman’s villains provide valuable insights into the larger themes he embodies. If Superman represents the positive blending of cultures in the immigrant experience, what does Braniac represent? His very existence as a foreign presence that steals from the very best of native cultures could easily be seen as the metaphor of colonial destruction taken to its most extreme.

While the average superhero comic may not delve deeply into these themes, they still facilitate these conversations through their existence as works of art, which are always a reflection of the world in which it was created. Earth-based stories tend to reset to the status quo, making Brainiac a manageable threat. But in the vastness of space, where civilizations are more fragile and less protected, Brainiac’s potential for destruction becomes a far greater danger. Imagine Brainiac repeating what he did to Kandor, Hawkman’s home planet of Thanagar, Tamaran, the homeworld of Starfire, or even the throne world of the newly formed United Planets Government. There are endless possibilities for Brainiac stories set outside of Earth.

2

Mister Mxyzptlk

First appearance: Superman #30 (September / October 1944)

Though not a villain in the strictest sense, this fifth-dimensional imp has been a well-known figure in Superman mythology for decades. Hailing from the land of imagination and possessing powers that let him warp reality with a snap of his fingers, the typically harmless Mister Mxyzptlk loves to visit the Last Son of Krypton and put him through various pranks and challenges, often enjoying the chance to test Superman’s boy scout mentality. However, a Superman who lacks the inherent innocence of the traditional Man of Tomorrow, like Absolute Superman, would make for a very different foil for the bowler-hat-wearing trickster.

Research by the popular media history YouTube channel Watchtower Database suggests that Mister Mxyzptlk is the same entity across all his various incarnations, from comics to cartoons, live-action TV shows, and video games. Given his extradimensional awareness of the mediums he inhabits, it would be fascinating to see Mxy encounter a Superman unlike any he has faced before, perhaps one who doesn’t share the traditional Superman’s sense of humor. Even more interesting could be watching Mxy clash with another DC Universe mainstay, such as the abrasive Guy Gardner.

1

Captain Cold

First appearance: Showcase #8 (June 1957)

Captain Cold is a formidable villain. His exploits may seem small-scale compared to those of Professor Zoom or Gorilla Grodd, but his leadership of the Flash Rogues is well-earned. Far from being the first or even the smartest foe the Flash has faced, Leonard Snart’s chilling edge comes from his cool demeanor and icy focus. Neither Captain Cold nor the Rogues aim for world domination or killing the Flash. In fact, they believe killing the Flash is foolish, as it would invite the wrath of the Justice League when all they want to do is rob banks and jewelry stores

Hailing from a blue-collar, working-class background, Captain Cold understands the challenges faced by career criminals. The Rogues function less like a typical supervillain crew and more like a union, with provisions and protections ensuring backup and compensation, even if they end up in jail. The talent and mental fortitude required to keep the Fastest Man Alive at bay are enough to make Snart one of the most underrated DC villains.

“}]] Batman is famous for his rogues gallery, but some of DC’s most underrated villains aren’t focused on the Dark Knight.  Read More