Superheroes are gods amongst men. With chiseled jawlines that look like Michelangelo himself carved them, it’s easy to see why people so admire the men and women who fill those tight spandex outfits. With hardly an ounce of body fat, heroes generally need to look good. It’s important to keep in shape, as you never know how long you’re going to be fighting or how many hours are going to be spent jumping from rooftop to rooftop. It’s also worth considering that you’re taken more seriously if you look like you’re a marble statue given life.

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Yet it’s not just superheroes that pump themselves up in order to achieve killer muscles, but supervillains too. Granted, you have folks like Darkseid who are just naturally jacked (the benefits of being a New God apparently), but then you have the blue-collar or hardworking villains who had to build themselves from the ground up. It doesn’t necessarily make them inspirational figures, they are bad guys after all, but you can’t ignore their many layers of muscles. Makes you wonder if being bad is good for the body. Here at CBR we’re looking at 15 villains who have just as much, if not more, muscle than the good guys they fight.

15 BANE

bane 2 to 1

The luchador-inspired villain known as Bane is one of Batman’s fiercest villains. From his earliest days, Bane’s life was a constant struggle to stay alive. Spending much of his youth in the prison of Santa Prisca; the only one who could protect him from the jail’s murderers and rapists was himself. He learned to defend himself quickly and became feared by the inmates.

While in jail, Bane put himself to work; constantly reading, learning and pumping iron in the gym; turning himself into what he considered perfection. It all paid off, as Bane grew to the size of a world-class body builder, and then some, with the a brilliant mind to go along with his hulking biceps. After suffering endlessly from bat-related dreams and then hearing about Batman , Bane believed the Dark Knight was his eternal tormentor. From there, he devised a master plan to break the Bat.

14 POISON IVY

One of Batman’s most alluring and provocative baddies, Poison Ivy is a woman unlike any other. Practically the embodiment of natural beauty, Poison Ivy walks around in what is essentially a skimpy swimsuit made of leaves. She can get away with it and nobody questions it, because you’d have to be insane to! Do you really want to hide the sometimes-green skin villainess? No, you fool!

Let her prance about in an outfit that literally only takes a strong gust of wind to blow off! So what if she’s trying to destroy Gotham City, all the while preaching about the dangers of Man and how they’re killing Mother Nature? And sure, Pamela Isley has looks that slay, nearly irresistible to all men and women, but she’s got brains to match. If super intelligence and a hot bod aren’t enough for you, then really, what is?

13 KRAVEN THE HUNTER

Kraven sits on his throne of skulls in Grim Hunt

Sergei Kravinoff, or Kraven the Hunter as he’s known when he’s stalking prey, comes from Russia. Like any good Russian, he doesn’t mind heading out in the wild in nothing more than a lion vest. Born into a dead aristocracy, Kraven yearned to restore his sense of lost nobility. To that end, he went to Africa and started fighting every animal imaginable. Kraven even went so far as to take herbal potions to enhance his physical abilities and give the speed, strength, and senses of a jungle cat…whatever that means.

Since then, the leopard-pants wearing shirtless hunter, made it his mission to find a prey worthy for him and he found it in Spider-Man. All his years of bench-pressing lions, tigers and bears oh my, paid off, as he’s gone toe-to-toe with the webbed hero multiple times. Talk about a man’s man!

12 CATWOMAN

There’s no denying that Catwoman is a classic femme fatale in every sense of the word. She oozes sex via every movement and knows exactly how to make a man go gaga. Remarkably alluring and especially provocative, what with showing off large amounts of cleavage at any given moment, it would be neigh impossible to try and keep your eyes off Catwoman. Don’t even get us started on when she’s prowling around on the floor, purring like a kitty cat, in nothing more than her skintight black cat suit.

Speaking of skintight cat suits, Selina Kyle is definitely one of the most athletic women roaming around Gotham City. Her outfit only helps to show off the God-given gifts she was blessed with. Hell, if she’s sexy enough to catch the eye of Batman, then any mere mortal would fall under her spell at the batting of an eyelash.

11 DAKEN

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The bastard son of the mutant X-Man Wolverine, Daken made it his life mission to bring ruin to his father. Luckily for him it was pretty easy to get people to help him with his plans; with runway model looks and a build to kill for. Daken also possesses the mutant ability to seduce people with pheromones, only aiding his cause(s) as he used his bisexuality to get under the skin of nearly everyone he came into contact with.

With a healing factor like Wolverine, it pretty much means he doesn’t have a shred of body fat; he could eat whatever he wants and it’d burn off just as quickly. Taking into account all the time he spent training and fighting and you have someone who’s not only dangerous, but incredibly ripped.

10 VENOM

In a perfect world, Eddie Brock and his alter ego Venom would have feasted on Spider-Man’s spleen years ago. Alas, this isn’t a perfect world, but that hasn’t stopped the crazed symbiotic villain from preparing for the opportunity. Obsessed would be one word to describe discredited reporter Eddie Brock as that’s exactly what he became when he felt Spider-Man ruined his career and he bonded with the alien symbiote.

Despite already being fueled by preternatural rage, strengthening the symbiote, and having all of Spider-Man’s powers, Eddie wanted to be stronger still. He worked out tirelessly, become larger than most bodybuilders, all in the name of reaching his peak strength to help his alien other. As Venom, they are a mass of gooey muscles and veins that look like they’re about to pop any moment. Their shapeshifting abilities allows for even greater size and muscle growth.

9 HARLEY QUINN

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On some level, it’s easy to look over the fact that Harley Quinn is one of the fittest female villains out there. Sure, she dresses up in clown makeup and for many people that’s off-putting, but have you seen her in that jester outfit? With a body that just won’t quit, Harley has a physique that would make most Olympians jealous.

A fully capable gymnast, with all that time jumping to and fro at the behest of the Joker, has turned Harley into a well-oiled machine. Her skills are on par with Nightwing and Catwoman, and her strength is uncanny, what with swinging a giant mallet all the time. Harley might not be super beefy; she’s the strong, sinewy type. Add on to the fact that she’s been experimented on and made even more durable than the average person and Harley is always ready for beach season!

8 MAESTRO

There’s no denying that Bruce Banner is a scrawny guy. Completely devoid of muscles, it makes sense that his counterpart, the Incredible Hulk, is the complete opposite. As the name suggests, the Hulk is a walking pile of muscles and testosterone. While there might be a variety of Hulks to choose from, the one consistency is that massive frame.

Apparently, gamma radiation is good for working out. Yet out of all the Hulks, the villain known as the Maestro might be the physically strongest, meanest and most jacked out of all his variations. Maestro goes to show that it doesn’t matter how old you are, you too can be a stallion! Using his size as a means of intimidation, it’s easy to see why Maestro is the strongest one there is.

7 MADAME HYDRA

Maybe it’s constantly fighting Captain America, the Avengers, and the X-Men, or maybe it’s trying to run the organization known as Hydra, but whatever it is that keeps Madame Hyrda so fit and lean seems to work wonders. With an extremely taut and lean body, Viper is one villainess who definitely stays off carbs.

While she might not have any powers, Madame Hydra has been trained to Olympic levels. Additionally, she’s endured grueling training in hand-to-hand combat, she’s learned swordsmanship, come to master a wide array of weapons and is doing anything and everything that involves constantly moving and burning calories. With looks to kill, oftentimes literally, Madame Hyrda is the kind of woman who will seduce you, take you to her room and then kill you with either her gorgeous legs or a poison-tipped weapon. Have fun with that.

6 JUGGERNAUT

Cain Marko, otherwise known as the Unstoppable Juggernaut, is as powerful as he is physically impressive. Standing at just less than 10 feet in height and weighing at nearly a ton, the Juggernaut easily powers through most of his foes. On his own, Cain is pretty darn muscular. Getting drafted into the military at a young age helped the future supervillain get his start.

Through a serious of shenanigans, Cain came into contact with the Crimson Gem of Cyttorak. The moment he touched it, Cain’s muscles swelled to the size of battleships, as he became the Juggernaut, host to immeasurable raw magical power. Of course he chose to go after Charles Xavier and the X-Men in a never-ending quest for revenge, but that’s a story for another time.

5 CHEETAH

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Someone, somewhere out there thinks Wonder Woman’s villain Cheetah is a sexy minx, and they aren’t half wrong. Imagine, if you will, a moody Victoria’s Secret model, alluring as they come. There’s only one thing to consider: she’s covered head to toe in fur…and looks like a giant, walking cat-lady. For some folks that’s their thing and we’re not judging.

There have been several iterations of Cheetah and they’ve all been built like furry glamor models. Thanks to the crazy gods they worship, each Cheetah is more than capable of taking on Wonder Woman, one of Earth’s strongest superheroes. You might not be able to tell, but underneath all that fur is layers and layers of taut, animalistic muscle, waiting to be unleashed at a moment’s notice.

4 DOOMSDAY

Doomsday bloody

Doomsday is the hulking Kryptonian monster famously known for killing Superman, the Man of Steel. A feat few can attest to, Doomsday was the product of horrific experimentation. As a baby, Doomsday was released into the Kryptonian wild where he was killed. The scientist who experimented on him, cloned the remains and repeated the process for decades until Doomsday was born; storing its genetic memory and acquiring the ability to adapt to anything that killed it before.

Eventually, Doomsday became neigh unstoppable. You know what else Doomsday acquired? Muscles; lots and lots of gray muscles with bone spikes protruding out of them. With an entirely natural-born strength, Doomsday’s body merely adapted to suit the conditions it was constantly being thrust in. That translated into making itself a frame that dwarfs most heroes and villains.

3 EMMA FROST

Never X Emma Frost

Emma Frost is the textbook definition of a bodacious babe. The White Queen from the Hellfire Club, Emma spent plenty of time trying to ruin the lives of the Uncanny X-Men. When she wasn’t masterminding plans of epic proportions, she was taking care of her perfect figure. Extremely vain, Emma will do literally anything to insure she looks amazing or at least will mentally manipulate people into thinking she looks fabulous.

Scantily dressed, Emma doesn’t believe in hiding her body. And can you blame her? She purposefully makes sure to wear outfits that extenuate and show off all of her sexy bits. It’s not terribly difficult to see how Scott Summers, the leader of the X-Men, might end up getting seduced by the powerful femme fatale.

2 SUPERBOY-PRIME

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With all of Superman’s looks when he was a teenager, Superboy-Prime looks like an Abercrombie and Fitch model, what with chiseled abs, pecs and chiseled everything, really. While Superboy-Prime might not be the most intimidating villain, you’d have to be blind to not see the 8-pack he rocks. It certainly helps that he’s Kyrptonian, since like his older doppelganger, his time on Earth means he’s constantly being bathed in yellow sunlight, forever getting charged like a superhuman battery.

He doesn’t need to workout, sleep, or worry about what he eats; the sun takes care of everything for him. From an alternate Earth, Superboy-Prime went crazy after being stuck in limbo for a number of years. After punching a hole in reality, he kind of went on a rampage and started killing folks. The moral of the story, if you want killer muscles, be an insane alien from an alternate universe.

1 MYSTIQUE

MYSTIQUE

Mystique is the kind of woman where the sky is the limit in terms of looks and appearances. You don’t have to worry about accessories with her or hear Mystique worrying about whether a slice of cake will add a couple pounds to her figure. With the power to not just shapeshift into any person she desires, but also shift her musculature, Raven Darkholme can ensure she looks exactly how she wants to.

It’s a useful ability to have; Mystique has caught the eye of many a mutant with her alluring ways. Capable of fighting foes like Wolverine to a standstill, you better believe she’s in the best shape imaginable. Sexy and deadly, Mystique is the perfect example of what it means to represent the best of both worlds.

Are there any other jacked villains we forgot to put on our list? Let us know in the comments section!