Villains are integral part of superhero comics, as they provide the conflict that is integral to the narrative. Marvel has been telling some of the best superhero stories for decades and some of their villains have gotten quite a following in that time. So much so that often these villains end up jumping to the hero side of the fence and helping fight against the forces that they once fought for.
When these intimidating villains become heroes, they've proven pretty successful, often saving the world. While they're failures as villains, their successes as heroes have shown that they have more going for them than one would think.
10 Apocalypse Made Good On Switching Sides By Helping To Save The World In X Of Swords
One of the many changes wrought by House of X/Powers of X was the mutant villains joining with the heroes and the most surprising of these was Apocalypse. Decreeing the mutant nation of Krakoa to be exactly what he always dreamed of, he embraced a leadership role with the nation, while also helping the members of Excalibur rediscover mutant magic.
Apocalypse had a history with Krakoa and its sister island Arakko, at a time when both were one landmass called Okkara. When Arakko's return heralded the coming of the demonic hordes of Amenth in X Of Swords, Apocalypse quickly became one of the most important mutants on the battlefield, battling his wife Genesis and finally brokering a peace between the warring factions.
9 Nebula Ended Thanos's Reign As Supreme Being In Infinity Gauntlet
Infinity Gauntlet is one of the greatest epics in Marvel history, but it had a surprising twist in the fifth issue. Thanos, having defeated all of the cosmic beings of the universe, became the new Eternity, leaving his physical form behind. Nebula, who he had decided to torture when he got the Gauntlet, took the opportunity to grab the Gauntlet from his prone body, ending his reign of terror.
Nebula would use the Gauntlet to undo everything Thanos had done. The heroes, led by Adam Warlock and with Thanos's help, were able to wrest the Gauntlet from her regardless, since it wasn't the type of power a space pirate who had just been tortured for weeks needed to have.
8 Skurge Joined Forces With Thor To Help Stop Ragnarok
Ragnarok is the fabled Norse apocalypse, something that Odin, Thor, and their fellow gods have been working for centuries to keep at bay. During Walt Simonson's classic Thor run, the fire demon Surtur kickstarted the event and the forces of Asgard rallied against him and his forces. This made for strange bedfellows, as Skurge joined up with the forces of Asgard.
The one-time Executioner helped out immensely, wielding two M-16s and giving his life during the battle against Surtur's undead forces. While he wasn't the only villain to help out in the battle, his sacrifice is remembered as an inspiring event by the forces of Asgard.
7 Thanos Helped Battle The Magus During Infinity War
Infinity War was the follow-up to Infinity Gauntlet and saw the evil side of Adam Warlock, the Magus, enact a plan to conquer all of reality. One of the most incongruent things about the conflict was that Thanos, he who had killed half the universe not long before, joined the battle against the Magus for completely altruistic reasons.
It was strange to see one of the Marvel Universe's greatest villains on the side of angels, but Thanos actually made a pretty great hero. He had no ulterior motives and genuinely wanted to stop the Magus, which was surprising for all involved.
6 Red Hulk Joined The Avengers & Helped Battle An Infinity Gauntlet Powered Hood
Red Hulk was yet another attempt by Thunderbolt Ross to destroy the Hulk, using himself this time and becoming a Hulk. After getting smacked down by the Jade Giant, Red Hulk would return and join the Avengers, as Ross decided to use his powers for good. He joined at the right time, as the Avengers would find themselves up against the Hood, who was on a mission to get the Infinity Gauntlet.
The Hood would succeed and Red Hulk was integral in the battle against the villain, helping the Avengers stop him and clearing his name. Red Hulk proved that he was about more than just getting revenge on the Hulk and redeemed himself nicely.
5 The Hood Helped Out In A Battle Against The Beyonder
Beyond! was a 2006 miniseries that saw the Beyonder return, scooping up Spider-Man, Venom, Gravity, the Hood, Medusa, Hank Pym, the Wasp, Kraven, and Firebird to battle on a newly constructed Battleworld. At first, the Hood was openly antagonistic but he and Gravity bonded, with the two of them becoming integral in the battle against the Beyonder.
Gravity would end up sacrificing himself to hold Battleworld together so the Hood could use his teleporting cloak to help the other escape. While his friend's example wouldn't keep him from greater villainy, it did help the Hood save the day once.
4 The Thunderbolts Broke Free Of Zemo's Control To Stop Him From Conquering The Earth
The Thunderbolts were one of Baron Zemo's best schemes. He and members of the Masters of Evil disguised themselves as heroes and took advantage of the disappearance of the Avengers and Fantastic Four after Onslaught's attacks, gaining fame and the public's trust. Zemo's ultimate plan was to use all of that to strike and take over the world but there was a problem.
The rest of the group liked being heroes, so they broke away from Zemo and thwarted his plot, fully embracing their new roles. The Thunderbolts would go on to become the villain premiere villain team in the Marvel Universe, eventually morphing into Norman Osborn's Dark Avengers.
3 Loki Helped The Avengers Against The Void In Siege
This one is pretty ironic, all things told. Loki had joined Norman Osborn's Cabal post-Secret Invasion in order to get Osborn to help him take control of Asgard. Eventually, the two were able to engineer a disaster that would allow them to attack the city, which was located at the time in Oklahoma. Osborn and his forces laid siege to Asgard, with the heroes coming out of hiding to strike back.
Things got way out of hand when the Void took over the Sentry and started to destroy everything. Loki, seeing what he wanted being destroyed, threw in the with heroes. Granting them the power of the Norn Stones, the extra boost he gave them helped them defeat the Void, even though it cost him his life.
2 Norman Osborn Saved The World From Morgana Le Fay & The Molecule Man As Iron Patriot
After ending the attack of the Skrulls by sniping their queen Vernake, Norman Osborn was given the keys to the kingdom. Taking over the Superhero Initiative, Osborn would rebrand the Thunderbolts as the Dark Avengers and using some older Starktech armor, became the Iron Patriot, co-opting the iconography of Captain America and Iron Man.
While Osborn's Dark Reign was pretty bad in a lot of ways, he also led the Dark Avengers to victory against villains as powerful as Morgana Le Fay and Molecule Man, saving the world.
1 Doctor Doom Saved The Universe From The Incursions
Doctor Doom has been responsible for saving the world more times than his detractors would admit but he was able to do something that none of the heroes were when the Incursions endangered all of reality- saved al ofl existence. While Iron Man and the Illuminati were destroying Earths, Doctor Doom was working behind the scenes, gaining the power he would need to save everything.
Doom used this power to save multiple alternate realities and this gave the heroes the building blocks they'd need to recreate the universe. While he did do it for self aggrandizement and because of his desire for power, he still did more to save the entirety of the Multiverse than the heroes did.
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