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8 Marvel Cinematic Universe Villains Who Just Plain Suck

Don't get us wrong. There's a lot to love about the Marvel Cinematic Universe. And we do mean a lot. It brought to life a ton of obscure comic book characters, it re-popularized the superhero genre, and it's encouraged other studios to pursue their own shared universes.

1) The Mandarin

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The Mandarin is one of Marvel’s odder characters. While being one of the most powerful enemies and Iron Man’s archenemy, he’s never quite managed to jump from the confines of B-list to the A-list status of others like Magneto, Doctor Doom and Thanos. This is in spite of several great story arcs penned by legendary comic writers like John Byrne (“The Dragon Seed Saga”), Kurt Busiek (“Revenge of the Mandarin”), and Matt Fraction (“Invincible Iron Man”).

2013’s Iron Man 3 was an opportunity to prop him up, much like Marvel Cinematic Universe had done with Loki in Thor and The Avengers. Alas, that was not to be the case. Though we’re aware of the retcon that occurred in the Marvel short All Hail the King that revealed a real Mandarin lurking in the shadows, that was clearly done in response to the fan backlash that was rightfully earned after Tony Stark’s threequel.

What was supposed to be the hero’s greatest challenge yet was turned into a fight against a generic terrorist that was soon revealed, in a ridiculous plot twist, to actually be a ruse for the real enemy: a disgruntled entrepreneur named Aldrich Killian that Tony had embarrassed years ago in what can only be described as a rehash of The Incredibles.

If the real Mandarin ever appears, he should be similar to his comic counterpart: Chinese, fascist and boasting 10 alien rings that give him all sorts of powers. That’s how you do the character right.