7 Marvel Villains Who Should Fight the X-Men More

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As a lifelong Marvel fan, I always thought the X-Men were the most popular team – and it’s not even a close contest, really. You talk to people wearing Marvel gear, and they’ll say they’re Avengers fans, but usually that’s just because of the movies. They haven’t really lived with the franchise the way X-Men fans have. The X-Men have been famous for decades, with tons of movies and TV shows building a huge fanbase long before most people even knew what the Avengers were all about. They even sold incredible numbers of individual comic books, which the Avengers just haven’t done. It’s always struck me as odd, then, that the X-Men haven’t faced more of the big, universe-level threats – the kinds of villains the Avengers and Fantastic Four usually get to tackle. And let’s be honest, the X-Men are way more popular than the Fantastic Four, so that’s just a given.

The X-Men are known for having the most compelling villains in comics, and lately, their conflicts have expanded beyond just mutant-related issues. It’s natural for them to face a wider range of enemies. Plus, certain Marvel villains would be great opponents for the X-Men no matter which team they fight. Here are seven Marvel villains the X-Men should battle more often, promising fans some truly epic showdowns.

7) Viper

Viper is a skilled international terrorist specializing in poisons, but she’s also known as Madame Hydra. She’s been a leader within Hydra for years, frequently clashing with heroes like Captain America, Nick Fury, and Black Widow. She also has a history with the X-Men and, like many who worked in covert operations during the 20th century, a complicated past with Wolverine. They were even briefly married recently, a calculated move by Viper to gain control of Madripoor – Wolverine owed her a debt from her time before joining Hydra. Given her animosity towards Wolverine, it’s likely she’ll continue to target the X-Men.

6) Count Nefaria

As a Marvel fan, I’ve always found Count Nefaria a bit underused. He’s a major player in the Maggia – basically the superpowered mafia – and at one point, he got seriously juiced up with ion energy, becoming strong enough to go toe-to-toe with even the strongest Avengers teams. But what really sticks with me is his history with the X-Men. He’s directly responsible for the death of Thunderbird, a loss that the team still feels, especially now that Thunderbird’s back. Honestly, I think revisiting that conflict would be fantastic. It would give Nefaria some much-needed relevance, and let’s be real, a fight between a super-powered mob boss and the X-Men? That would be epic!

5) Red Skull

Red Skull is considered Marvel’s most hopeless villain, having battled many of its strongest heroes. Surprisingly, despite being a notorious racist, Johann Schmidt hasn’t often targeted mutants for elimination. While he fought the Avengers Unity Squad and briefly clashed with the X-Men as Red Onslaught, he’s largely ignored them. It’s strange that we haven’t seen more stories pitting Red Skull against the X-Men – it would be exciting to see the X-Men defeat him and his Nazi ideology.

4) Dormammu

Doctor Strange has faced incredible challenges, but his battles with Dormammu have been the most dangerous. Dormammu is a supremely powerful magical being who rules over a dark realm and commands vast armies, including the relentless Mindless Ones. While the X-Men haven’t often dealt with magic, they’ve encountered magical foes before, and currently have a powerful magic user, Magik, among their leadership. The X-Men have even defeated Dormammu in the past, leaving him with a deep resentment. It would be a compelling storyline if Dormammu targeted Magik, repeatedly drawing the X-Men into a conflict with him.

3) The Apocalypse Twins

I’ve been following the Apocalypse Twins, and honestly, they feel like they should be major X-Men antagonists. Their backstory is incredible – the children of Archangel and Famine, raised in a terrible future prison by Kang and Red Skull! They actually succeeded in destroying Earth and relocating mutants to another planet, and it took time travel from Havok, Wasp, and Beast to fix it. Since then, they’ve been off the radar, and I really think it’s time they came back to target the X-Men. They’re fantastic villains, and I’m hoping we get to see a lot more of them soon.

2) Ultron

Ultron is a particularly dangerous enemy of the Avengers, believing all life should be eliminated, starting with humans. While his conflicts with the Avengers are understandable given his history with the team, he should also be targeting the X-Men. As the next step in human evolution, the X-Men would present a significant challenge for Ultron, and he’s bound to encounter them eventually. Ultimately, more battles with Ultron are welcome, and the X-Men certainly deserve a chance to fight a robot determined to wipe out life.

1) Kang the Conqueror

Kang the Conqueror is a major enemy of the Avengers, a warrior who travels through time and consistently defeats those who stand in his way. He often fights the Avengers because they’re known for winning, and he wants a real challenge. However, the X-Men are equally powerful, boasting incredibly strong members like Storm, Magik, and Phoenix, who rival even the most powerful Avengers. It would make sense for Kang to target the X-Men more often, adding exciting time-traveling adventures to their already dramatic storylines and giving fans something new to enjoy.

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2026-06-02 17:45