History Sandbox / MagnificentBastardMarvelCinematicUniverse

* [[Characters/MCUThanos Thanos]] the Mad Titan, after the death of his home world, is obsessed with reducing the population of the universe to save it and prove himself right. Forming an army of fanatics, Thanos travels from world to world, killing off half of the population of each, while taking children to raise as new warriors in his army, including his favorite daughter [[Characters/MCUGamora Gamora]]. [[Film/AvengersInfinityWar Seeking the Infinity Stones]] to wipe out half the universe in one snap of his fingers, Thanos tricks and traps the heroes, staying one step ahead to reclaim the stones, even sacrificing Gamora to claim the Soul Stone at one point even as it destroys him to do so. Attacking Wakanda and repeatedly showing brilliant and effective use of the Stones, Thanos completes his gauntlet and performs the snap, before then destroying the stones to prevent his work from being undone. [[Film/AvengersEndgame When his past self from 2014 arrives]], Thanos has his daughter [[Characters/MCUNebula Nebula]] infiltrate the heroes, posing as her future self to not repeat any failures, resolving to wipe out the universe and make a new, grateful one himself before engaging in the ultimate battle for the fate of all existence.

* ''Series/WandaVision'': [[WickedWitch Agatha Harkness]] is a witch who desires [[Characters/MCUScarletWitch Wanda Maximoff]]'s Chaos Magic for her own purposes. Infiltrating Westview and Wanda's sitcom fantasies, Agatha plays the role of "[[NosyNeighbor Agnes]]", engineering scenarios such a dog dying or "[[ComicBook/{{Quicksilver}} Pietro]]'s resurrection" to emotionally string Wanda and [[Characters/MCUVision Vision]] away from each other. Capturing Wanda in her basement, Agatha examines her past before attacking Wanda and her loved ones to absorb the Chaos Magic. In a last ditch effort, Agatha frees the people of Westview from Wanda's spell, guilt tripping Wanda into lowering the Hex and emotionally wrecking her into almost making a deal to allow her, Vision, and her twins to live in a more perfect fantasy to keep that latter three existing.

* "Dr. Ivchenko", in reality [[CompellingVoice Johann Fennhoff]], is a high-ranking Leviathan agent who orchestrated the theft of Howard Stark's inventions. Posing as a [[AffablyEvil kindly]] psychologist prisoner of Leviathan, the "rescued" Fennhoff befriends S.S.R. chief Roger Dooley, [[TreacherousAdvisor giving him advice]] on his collapsing marriage while gradually brainwashing him and making contact with Leviathan operative Dottie Underwood. Often allowing his victims to experience one last pleasure before killing themselves, Fennhoff has Dooley give him access to the recovered Stark weapons and takes the [[HatePlague Midnight Oil]], having Dooley put on a suicide vest as a distraction while he meets up with Underwood. After capturing Stark Fennhoff reveals that he seeks revenge for the death of his brother, planning to hypnotize Stark into releasing the Midnight Oil on New York so his guilt afterwards will destroy him.

* "[[DarkActionGirl Dottie Underwood]]" is a [[ComicBook/BlackWidow Red Room]] graduate and [[TheDragon accomplice]] to Fennhoff. Seducing Tony Stark so that he would show her his vault of inventions, Underwood later befriends Peggy Carter as her neighbor. Spying on Carter without detection, Underwood makes contact with Fennhoff and helps him to capture Stark, evading arrest from both Peggy and other S.S.R. agents. Upon finally being captured, Underwood easily resists giving up information and humiliates her interrogators, before being broken out by Peggy to help spy on Whitney Frost. Underwood continues to laugh off torture when captured by Frost's minions, only breaking when Frost uses her Zero Matter powers on her. Psychotic yet flirtatious, especially in her rivalry with Peggy, Underwood ends the series a [[KarmaHoudini free woman]] after escaping both Frost and Peggy's custody.

* ''Film/IronMan2'': [[BigBad Ivan Vanko]] is the son of Anton Vanko, a disgraced colleague of Howard Stark. Vowing to destroy [[Characters/MCUIronMan Tony Stark]]'s reputation [[SinsOfOurFathers for his father's pitiable fate]], Ivan developed his own arc reactor from his father's designs with limited materials and attacked Iron Man at a Grand Prix in Monaco for the sole purpose of disproving Iron Man's invincibility. Despite losing, Ivan observed that Tony was suffering from palladium poisoning and was content with knowing that Tony would be dead soon before being broken out of prison by Tony's rival Justin Hammer, making a deal to team up to take Tony down. Taking advantage of Hammer's resources while [[ObfuscatingStupidity pretending to be incompetent]], Ivan created [[AttackDrone Hammer Drones]] and his own PoweredArmor for Hammer's presentation before hijacking the drones' programming and setting them loose on the crowd. Joining the fray, Ivan's suit proved a match for Iron Man and his friend [[Characters/MCUWarMachine War Machine]], and despite losing again, Ivan [[TakingYouWithMe used his death to set off explosives in every piece of machinery he made]], nearly killing Iron Man. With his determination and skills, Ivan Vanko proved to be the ultimate EvilCounterpart to Iron Man.

* ''Film/SpiderManHomecoming'': [[BigBad Adrian Toomes/Vulture]] was once a hard working man who made a living salvaging Chitauri technology from [[Film/TheAvengers2012 The Incident]]. After having his occupation taken by Damage Control, he became a career criminal, taking the moniker [[RazorWings The Vulture]], and turning what was left of his salvaging company into an underground arms dealership, that would steal said technology and sell it to criminals. Toomes made sure not to leave any evidence for government officials to track his operations, while also making sure they aren't too big so that the Avengers won't view them as a threat; This process worked great for Toomes and his criminal business lasted for eight years without any problems. However, when he does face a problem in [[Characters/MCUSpiderMan Spider-Man]] he isn't afraid to fight Spider-Man himself on several occasions; Spider-Man barely manages to survive those encounters with him. He is also able to uncover Spider-Man's civilian identity, Peter Parker, simply by analyzing Peter's behavior, and finds an opportunity to intimidate Peter from interfering with his operations. When this fails he sends [[ShockAndAwe The Shocker]] to distract Peter and later fights him for the final time so he wouldn't foil Toomes' latest heist job. Although threatening to kill Peter and his loved ones, it's shown that Toomes greatly respects him, showing gratitude for saving his daughter's life, as well as his own, by not selling out his SecretIdentity in prison, cementing Adrian Toomes as one of the most [[NobleDemon honorable,]] yet cunning foes in the films.

* [[BigGood Enoch]] is a Chronicom anthropologist sent to record human evolution. Learning of an extinction-level event that will occur in the near future, Enoch kidnaps the [[Characters/{{MCUSHIELD}} S.H.I.E.L.D. agents]] and sends them to the year 2091 in order to prevent the end of the world. Later assisting Leo Fitz in reuniting with his friends by [[TheSlowPath cryogenically freezing him]], Enoch and Fitz infiltrate the Kree Inhuman auction to save the latter's teammates, Enoch sacrificing himself so S.H.I.E.L.D. can return to the present. With the timeline changed, Enoch helps Fitz go on the run, before reluctantly betraying both him and Simmons to the Hunters when informed they want to learn how to time travel in order to save Chronyca-2. [[MySpeciesDothProtestTooMuch Later rescuing his friends]], Enoch defeats a Hunter sent after him before stealing his skin to infiltrate the Hunters and once again save Fitz and Jenna Simmons. Having stolen a Chronicom Time Stream, the three spend years preparing to stop the Hunters, returning to the time they left to put their plan into motion. Secretly scattering throughout history pieces of a time machine later used to contact Fitz and successfully execute the rest of their plan, Enoch ultimately [[HeroicSacrifice sacrifices]] himself once more so that S.H.I.E.L.D. can escape a time loop, dying content that [[UndyingLoyalty he is and always has been their friend]].

* [[BigGood Enoch]] is a Chronicom anthropologist sent to record human evolution. Learning of an extinction-level event that will occur in the near future, Enoch kidnaps the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents and sends them to the year 2091 in order to prevent the end of the world. Later assisting Leo Fitz in reuniting with his friends by [[TheSlowPath cryogenically freezing him]], Enoch and Fitz infiltrate the Kree Inhuman auction to save the latter's teammates, Enoch sacrificing himself so S.H.I.E.L.D. can return to the present. With the timeline changed, Enoch helps Fitz go on the run, before reluctantly betraying both him and Simmons to the Hunters when informed they want to learn how to time travel in order to save Chronyca-2. [[MySpeciesDothProtestTooMuch Later rescuing his friends]], Enoch defeats a Hunter sent after him before stealing his skin to infiltrate the Hunters and once again save Fitz and Jenna Simmons. Having stolen a Chronicom Time Stream, the three spend years preparing to stop the Hunters, returning to the time they left to put their plan into motion. Secretly scattering throughout history pieces of a time machine later used to contact Fitz and successfully execute the rest of their plan, Enoch ultimately [[HeroicSacrifice sacrifices]] himself once more so that S.H.I.E.L.D. can escape a time loop, dying content that [[UndyingLoyalty he is and always has been their friend]].
* The man once known as [[FromNobodyToNightmare Alveus]], upon Kree experimentation, was forever transformed into "[[HiveMind Hive]]." Through sheer intellect and force of will, Hive drove the Kree from earth, rallying all ComicBook/TheInhumans to his side in the process, and though banished from earth by treacherous followers, Hive nonetheless laid the groundwork for the formation of [[Characters/{{MCUHYDRA}} HYDRA]], the death cult organization that has haunted the world for centuries after. In the present, Hive manipulates himself back to earth with help from Gideon Malick, and immediately amasses a small following of Inhumans. Using Malick before murdering him once he [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness outlives his usefulness]], Hive stays one step ahead of [[Characters/{{MCUSHIELD}} S.H.I.E.L.D.]] throughout the series, even turning Daisy Johnson to his side and using her as a mole. Though driven temporarily insane, Hive is revealed to have exaggerated even this as a plot to be captured then use SHIELD's own devices to enact his final plan of turning a chunk of humanity into Inhumans so as to create a perfect, peaceful paradise. Hive's final moments are spent calmly reflecting that he truly wanted what was best for Inhumans, and dies realizing and admitting that perhaps humanity isn't as deserving of destruction as he once thought.

[[AC:Series/AgentsOfSHIELD]]

* [[Characters/MCUThanos Thanos]] the Mad Titan, after the death of his home world, is obsessed with reducing the population of the universe to save it and prove himself right. Forming an army of fanatics, Thanos travels from world to world, killing off half of the population of each, while taking children to raise as new warriors in his army, including his favorite daughter [[Characters/MCUGamora Gamora]]. [[Film/AvengersInfinityWar Seeking the Infinity Stones]] to wipe out half the universe in one snap of his fingers, Thanos tricks and traps the heroes, staying one step ahead to reclaim the stones, even sacrificing Gamora to claim the Soul Stone at one point even as it destroys him to do so. Attacking Wakanda and repeatedly showing brilliant and effective use of the Stones, Thanos completes his gauntlet and performs the snap, before then destroying the stones to prevent his work from being undone. [[Film/AvengersEndgame When his past self from 2014 arrives]], he has his daughter [[Characters/MCUNebula Nebula]] infiltrate the heroes, posing as her future self to not repeat any failures, resolving to wipe out the universe and make a new, grateful one himself before engaging in the ultimate battle for the fate of all existence.

* ''[[Characters/MCUCaptainAmerica Captain America]]'' films:
** ''[[Film/CaptainAmericaTheWinterSoldier The Winter Soldier]]'': [[WellIntentionedExtremist Alexander Pierce]] is the US Secretary of Defense, a member of the World Security Council, and a commanding member of [[Characters/{{MCUHYDRA}} HYDRA]], who have evolved from a Nazi science cult to a fascist conspiracy group dedicated to bringing about OneWorldOrder under their banner. Pierce had the Winter Soldier assassinate his old friend Nick Fury so Pierce can take control of [[Characters/{{MCUSHIELD}} S.H.I.E.L.D.]] and Project Insight, intending to use the project to massacre hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions of people, who could stand in HYDRA's way. Along the way he frames Captain America as a rogue agent who has to go on the run, kills his fellow members of the World Security Council, and shoots his housekeeper just for walking in on a meeting he has with the [[Characters/MCUBuckyBarnes Winter Soldier]]. He does all of this with calm, affable composure towards his enemies, attempting to make them understand that UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans.
** ''[[Film/CaptainAmericaCivilWar Civil War]]'': [[Characters/MCUBaronHelmutZemo Helmut Zemo]] proves his stripes as one of the greatest manipulators of the franchise. Overcome with grief over losing [[Film/AvengersAgeOfUltron his family during the Avengers battle with Ultron]], Zemo decides to enact vengeance against them. Knowing he is no match for them in strength, Zemo instead devises an intricate plan to break them up. Launching an attack on a UN conference, Zemo frames Bucky Barnes for the attack which starts a manhunt against him. After Bucky is captured, Zemo impersonates a UN interrogator to activate Bucky's Trigger Phrase which will put him under his control to give him information on the death of Tony Stark's parents. Finally, Zemo leaks this ruse to the media, counting on Tony Stark following Cap and Bucky to the Hydra compound in Siberia so he can accomplish his real plan: show Tony evidence that Bucky killed his parents, causing him to fly into a murderous rage and attack Bucky and Captain America, devastatingly fracturing the Avengers. By the end, in spite of being captured by [[Characters/MCUBlackPanther T'Challa]], Zemo still accomplishes what he wanted and [[GracefulLoser gracefully accepts his capture]] and even offers to let T'Challa kill him to avenge the death of his father. Zemo stands out in a world full of super-powered beings, aliens, sorcerers and cosmic entities with only his intelligence and able to cement himself as one of the work's most successful villains.

[[AC:Films, Thanos, followed by release date]]

** ''[[Film/CaptainAmericaCivilWar Civil War]]'': [[ComicBook/BaronZemo Helmut Zemo]] proves his stripes as one of the greatest manipulators of the franchise. Overcome with grief over losing [[Film/AvengersAgeOfUltron his family during the Avengers battle with Ultron]], Zemo decides to enact vengeance against them. Knowing he is no match for them in strength, Zemo instead devises an intricate plan to break them up. Launching an attack on a UN conference, Zemo frames Bucky Barnes for the attack which starts a manhunt against him. After Bucky is captured, Zemo impersonates a UN interrogator to activate Bucky's Trigger Phrase which will put him under his control to give him information on the death of Tony Stark's parents. Finally, Zemo leaks this ruse to the media, counting on Tony Stark following Cap and Bucky to the Hydra compound in Siberia so he can accomplish his real plan: show Tony evidence that Bucky killed his parents, causing him to fly into a murderous rage and attack Bucky and Captain America, devastatingly fracturing the Avengers. By the end, in spite of being captured by [[Characters/MCUBlackPanther T'Challa]], Zemo still accomplishes what he wanted and [[GracefulLoser gracefully accepts his capture]] and even offers to let T'Challa kill him to avenge the death of his father. Zemo stands out in a world full of super-powered beings, aliens, sorcerers and cosmic entities with only his intelligence and able to cement himself as one of the work's most successful villains.

* ''Series/Daredevil2015'': [[ComicBook/TheKingpin Wilson Fisk]] runs a complex scheme to make himself the hero to Hell's Kitchen, all while bringing organized crime under his thumb for the supposed betterment of the city. Falling prey to his own insecurities and impulsivity, Fisk is defeated and imprisoned, but slowly rebuilds himself as more dangerous and clever than ever. Shedding his former flaws, Fisk becomes a force to be reckoned with, even arranging for the Punisher to dispose of his obstacles, outmanuevers and crushes all his opposition and arranges for his own release from prison under 'house arrest' where he still dominates organized crime as the true kingpin. Steadily manipulating others into his grasp, including the deadly FBI agent 'Dex' Pointdexer, he arranges for Dex to impersonate Daredevil on several murders as to frame him, all while rising even further and even getting his hooks into FBI agents. Even when defeated, he makes a deal with Daredevil for the safety of his beloved Vanessa and seals it with an honorable handshake, constantly showcasing himself as one of the most brilliant and skilled villains in all the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

* [[Characters/MCUThanos Thanos]] the Mad Titan, after the death of his home world, is obsessed with reducing the population of the universe to save it and prove himself right. Forming an army of fanatics, Thanos travels from world to world, killing off half of the population of each, while taking children to raise as new warriors in his army, including his favorite daughter [[Characters/MCUGamora Gamora]]. [[Film/AvengersInfinityWar Seeking the Infinity Stones]] to wipe out half the universe in one snap of his fingers, Thanos tricks and traps the heroes, staying one step ahead to reclaim the stones, even sacrificing Gamora to claim the Soul Stone at one point even as it destroys him to do so. Attacking Wakanda and repeatedly showing brilliant and effective use of the Stones, Thanos completes his gauntlet and performs the snap, before then destroying the stones to prevent his work from being undone. [[Film/AvengersEndgame When his past self from 2014 arrives]], he has his daughter Nebula infiltrate the heroes, posing as her future self to not repeat any failures, resolving to wipe out the universe and make a new, grateful one himself before engaging in the ultimate battle for the fate of all existence.
* ''Film/IronMan2'': [[BigBad Ivan Vanko]] is the son of Anton Vanko, a disgraced colleague of Howard Stark. Vowing to destroy [[Characters/MCUIronMan Tony Stark]]'s reputation [[SinsOfOurFathers for his father's pitiable fate]], Ivan developed his own arc reactor from his father's designs with limited materials and attacked Iron Man at a Grand Prix in Monaco for the sole purpose of disproving Iron Man's invincibility. Despite losing, Ivan observed that Tony was suffering from palladium poisoning and was content with knowing that Tony would be dead soon before being broken out of prison by Tony's rival Justin Hammer, making a deal to team up to take Tony down. Taking advantage of Hammer's resources while [[ObfuscatingStupidity pretending to be incompetent]], Ivan created [[AttackDrone Hammer Drones]] and his own PoweredArmor for Hammer's presentation before hijacking the drones' programming and setting them loose on the crowd. Joining the fray, Ivan's suit proved a match for Iron Man and his friend War Machine, and despite losing again, Ivan [[TakingYouWithMe used his death to set off explosives in every piece of machinery he made]], nearly killing Iron Man. With his determination and skills, Ivan Vanko proved to be the ultimate EvilCounterpart to Iron Man.

** ''[[Film/CaptainAmericaCivilWar Civil War]]'': [[ComicBook/BaronZemo Helmut Zemo]] proves his stripes as one of the greatest manipulators of the franchise. Overcome with grief over losing [[Film/AvengersAgeOfUltron his family during the Avengers battle with Ultron]], Zemo decides to enact vengeance against them. Knowing he is no match for them in strength, Zemo instead devises an intricate plan to break them up. Launching an attack on a UN conference, Zemo frames Bucky Barnes for the attack which starts a manhunt against him. After Bucky is captured, Zemo impersonates a UN interrogator to activate Bucky's Trigger Phrase which will put him under his control to give him information on the death of Tony Stark's parents. Finally, Zemo leaks this ruse to the media, counting on Tony Stark following Cap and Bucky to the Hydra compound in Siberia so he can accomplish his real plan: show Tony evidence that Bucky killed his parents, causing him to fly into a murderous rage and attack Bucky and Captain America, devastatingly fracturing the Avengers. By the end, in spite of being captured by T'Challa, Zemo still accomplishes what he wanted and [[GracefulLoser gracefully accepts his capture]] and even offers to let T'Challa kill him to avenge the death of his father. Zemo stands out in a world full of super-powered beings, aliens, sorcerers and cosmic entities with only his intelligence and able to cement himself as one of the work's most successful villains.

** ''[[Film/CaptainAmericaTheWinterSoldier The Winter Soldier]]'': [[WellIntentionedExtremist Alexander Pierce]] is the US Secretary of Defense, a member of the World Security Council, and a commanding member of [[Characters/{{MCUHYDRA}} HYDRA]], who have evolved from a Nazi science cult to a fascist conspiracy group dedicated to bringing about OneWorldOrder under their banner. Pierce had the Winter Soldier assassinate his old friend Nick Fury so Pierce can take control of [[Characters/{{MCUSHIELD}} S.H.I.E.L.D.]] and Project Insight, intending to use the project to massacre hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions of people, who could stand in HYDRA's way. Along the way he frames Captain America as a rogue agent who has to go on the run, kills his fellow members of the World Security Council, and shoots his housekeeper just for walking in on a meeting he has with the Winter Soldier. He does all of this with calm, affable composure towards his enemies, attempting to make them understand that UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans.

** ''[[Film/CaptainAmericaTheWinterSoldier The Winter Soldier]]'': [[WellIntentionedExtremist Alexander Pierce]] is the US Secretary of Defense, a member of the World Security Council, and a commanding member of [[Characters/{{MCUHYDRA}} HYDRA]], who have evolved from a Nazi science cult to a fascist conspiracy group dedicated to bringing about OneWorldOrder under their banner. Pierce had the Winter Soldier assassinate his old friend Nick Fury so Pierce can take control of [[Characters/{{MCUSHIELD}} S.H.I.E.L.D.]] and Project Insight, intending to use the project to massacre hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions of people, who could stand in HYDRA's way. Along the way he frames Captain America as a rogue agent who has to go on the run, kills his fellow members of the World Security Council, and shoots his housekeeper just for walking in on a meeting he has with the Winter Soldier. And he does all of this with calm, affable composure towards his enemies, attempting to make them understand that UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans.

-->--'''[[ComicBook/BaronZemo Helmut Zemo]]''', ''Film/CaptainAmericaCivilWar''

* ''Film/SpiderManHomecoming'': [[BigBad Adrian Toomes/Vulture]] was once a hard working man who made a living salvaging Chitauri technology from [[Film/TheAvengers2012 The Incident]]. After having his occupation taken by Damage Control, he became a career criminal, taking the moniker [[RazorWings The Vulture]], and turning what was left of his salvaging company into an underground arms dealership, that would steal said technology and sell it to criminals. Toomes made sure not to leave any evidence for government officials to track his operations, while also making sure they aren't too big so that the Avengers won't view them as a threat; This process worked great for Toomes and his criminal business lasted for eight years without any problems. However, when he does face a problem in [[TheHero Spider-Man]] he isn't afraid to fight Spider-Man himself on several occasions; Spider-Man barely manages to survive those encounters with him. He is also able to uncover Spider-Man's civilian identity, Peter Parker, simply by analyzing Peter's behavior, and finds an opportunity to intimidate Peter from interfering with his operations. When this fails he sends [[ShockAndAwe The Shocker]] to distract Peter and later fights him for the final time so he wouldn't foil Toomes' latest heist job. Although threatening to kill Peter and his loved ones, it's shown that Toomes greatly respects him, showing gratitude for saving his daughter's life, as well as his own, by not selling out his SecretIdentity in prison, cementing Adrian Toomes as one of the most [[NobleDemon honorable,]] yet cunning foes in the films.

* ''Film/CaptainAmericaTheWinterSoldier'': [[WellIntentionedExtremist Alexander Pierce]] is the US Secretary of Defense, a member of the World Security Council, and a commanding member of [[Characters/{{MCUHYDRA}} HYDRA]], who have evolved from a Nazi science cult to a fascist conspiracy group dedicated to bringing about OneWorldOrder under their banner. Pierce had the Winter Soldier assassinate his old friend Nick Fury so Pierce can take control of [[Characters/{{MCUSHIELD}} S.H.I.E.L.D.]] and Project Insight, intending to use the project to massacre hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions of people, who could stand in HYDRA's way. Along the way he frames Captain America as a rogue agent who has to go on the run, kills his fellow members of the World Security Council, and shoots his housekeeper just for walking in on a meeting he has with the Winter Soldier. And he does all of this with calm, affable composure towards his enemies, attempting to make them understand that UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans.
* ''Film/CaptainAmericaCivilWar'': [[ComicBook/BaronZemo Helmut Zemo]] proves his stripes as one of the greatest manipulators of the franchise. Overcome with grief over losing [[Film/AvengersAgeOfUltron his family during the Avengers battle with Ultron]], Zemo decides to enact vengeance against them. Knowing he is no match for them in strength, Zemo instead devises an intricate plan to break them up. Launching an attack on a UN conference, Zemo frames Bucky Barnes for the attack which starts a manhunt against him. After Bucky is captured, Zemo impersonates a UN interrogator to activate Bucky's Trigger Phrase which will put him under his control to give him information on the death of Tony Stark's parents. Finally, Zemo leaks this ruse to the media, counting on Tony Stark following Cap and Bucky to the Hydra compound in Siberia so he can accomplish his real plan: show Tony evidence that Bucky killed his parents, causing him to fly into a murderous rage and attack Bucky and Captain America, devastatingly fracturing the Avengers. By the end, in spite of being captured by T'Challa, Zemo still accomplishes what he wanted and [[GracefulLoser gracefully accepts his capture]] and even offers to let T'Challa kill him to avenge the death of his father. Zemo stands out in a world full of super-powered beings, aliens, sorcerers and cosmic entities with only his intelligence and able to cement himself as one of the work's most successful villains.

* The man once known as Alveus, upon Kree experimentation, was forever transformed into "Hive." Through sheer intellect and force of will, Hive drove the Kree from earth, rallying all ComicBook/TheInhumans to his side in the process, and though banished from earth by treacherous followers, Hive nonetheless laid the groundwork for the formation of [[Characters/{{MCUHYDRA}} HYDRA]], the death cult organization that has haunted the world for centuries after. In the present, Hive manipulates himself back to earth with help from Gideon Malick, and immediately amasses a small following of Inhumans. Using Malick before murdering him once he [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness outlives his usefulness]], Hive stays one step ahead of [[Characters/{{MCUSHIELD}} S.H.I.E.L.D.]] throughout the series, even turning Daisy Johnson to his side and using her as a mole. Though driven temporarily insane, Hive is revealed to have exaggerated even this as a plot to be captured then use SHIELD's own devices to enact his final plan of turning a chunk of humanity into Inhumans so as to create a perfect, peaceful paradise. Hive's final moments are spent calmly reflecting that he truly wanted what was best for Inhumans, and dies realizing and admitting that perhaps humanity isn't as deserving of destruction as he once thought.

* Madame Gao is a leader of [[Characters/MCUTheHand The Hand]] who works with [[ComicBook/TheKingpin Wilson Fisk]], first coming into conflict with [[Characters/MCUDefenders the Defenders]] through her heroin trade in New York City. A manipulator extraordinaire, Gao operates by gaining leverage on powerful figures, having [[Series/IronFist2017 deeply ingrained herself into Danny Rand's family company]] and uses it as a front for her drug trade. A charismatic leader, Gao's followers have unwavering loyalty to her, her drug factory workers having willingly blinded themselves as a sign of faith in her. Ever calm in the face of her enemies, Gao manipulates Danny and his friends when they capture her, manipulating them into doubting each other and mocks them by pretending to be under the effects of their truth serum.

* [[Characters/MCUThanos Thanos]] the Mad Titan, after the death of his home world, is obsessed with reducing the population of the universe to save it and prove himself right. Forming an army of fanatics, Thanos travels from world to world, killing off half of the population of each, while taking children to raise as new warriors in his army, including his favorite daughter [[Characters/MCUGamora Gamora]]. [[Film/AvengersInfinityWar Seeking the Infinity Stones]] to wipe out half the universe in one snap of his fingers, Thanos tricks and traps the heroes, staying one step ahead to reclaim the stones, even sacrificing Gamora to claim the Soul Stone at one point even as it destroys him to do so. Attacking Wakanda, Thanos repeatedly shows brilliant and effective use of the Stones before completing his gauntlet and performing the snap, before destroying the stones to prevent his work from being undone. [[Film/AvengersEndgame When his past self from 2014 arrives]], he has his daughter Nebula infiltrate the heroes, posing as her future self to not repeat any failures, resolving to wipe out the universe and make a new, grateful one himself before engaging in the ultimate battle for the fate of all existence.

* ''Film/CaptainAmericaTheWinterSoldier'': [[WellIntentionedExtremist Alexander Pierce]] is the US Secretary of Defense, a member of the World Security Council, and a commanding member of [[Characters/{{MCUHYDRA}} HYDRA]], who have evolved from a Nazi science {{Cult}} to a fascist conspiracy group dedicated to bringing about OneWorldOrder under their banner. Pierce had the Winter Soldier assassinate his old friend Nick Fury so Pierce can take control of [[Characters/{{MCUSHIELD}} S.H.I.E.L.D.]] and Project Insight, intending to use the project to massacre hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions of people, who could stand in HYDRA's way. Along the way he frames Captain America as a rogue agent who has to go on the run, kills his fellow members of the World Security Council, and shoots his housekeeper just for walking in on a meeting he has with the Winter Soldier. And he does all of this with calm, affable composure towards his enemies, attempting to make them understand that UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans.

* ''Film/CaptainAmericaTheWinterSoldier'': Alexander Pierce is the US Secretary of Defense, a member of the World Security Council, and a commanding member of Characters/{{MCUHYDRA}}, who have evolved from a Nazi science {{Cult}} to a fascist conspiracy group dedicated to bringing about OneWorldOrder under their banner. Pierce had the Winter Soldier assassinate his old friend Nick Fury so Pierce can take control of Characters/{{MCUSHIELD}} and Project Insight, intending to use the project to massacre hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions of people, who could stand in HYDRA's way. Along the way he frames Captain America as a rogue agent who has to go on the run, kills his fellow members of the World Security Council, and shoots his housekeeper just for walking in on a meeting he has with the Winter Soldier. And he does all of this with calm, affable composure towards his enemies, attempting to make them understand that UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans.