It's been said that a hero is only as good as their villain, but what happens when the villain leaves their wicked ways behind and starts their own heroic path? While it's not the most common career path for die-hard supervillains, fans have seen a number of villains move back and forth over the line of right and wrong a few times over the years.
However, there are also a number of classic comic book villains that have consistently become less evil over the years, moving from villain to anti-hero to full-fledged hero in some cases. Their usual back and forth reversed as they occasionally leave the hero business to return to their villainous roots.
10 Cain Marko Spent Years Reforming As The Unstoppable Juggernaut & Now Works For Damage Control
When Cain Marko/Juggernaut first smashed his way into the pages of 1965's Uncanny X-Men #12, the character was filled with rage and resentment for his mutant step-brother, caused by years of abuse at the hands of his own father.
While Juggernaut spent years as a destructive criminal and thief, he began to turn over a new leaf in the last couple of decades that saw him briefly join the X-Men before the loss of his mystical abilities swayed him back to villainy. Juggernaut was recently repowered and took a job with Damage Control as he began a new chapter in his reformed life.
9 Catwoman May Still Sometimes Operate As A Thief But She Has Officially Joined The Heroic Bat Family
Selina Kyle/Catwoman spent years as a costumed thief before her flirtatious relationship with Batman began to develop into something more, separating her from the rest of Gotham City's rogues even as she continued to operate as a criminal.
Catwoman's crimes were definitely not considered as evil as some of the other villains Batman faced over the years. And while she still occasionally operates as a thief in her altruistic vigilantism, Catwoman's romance with Batman has evolved to the point that she is now an official member of the Bat Family who has aided the heroic team in a number of events.
8 Flint Marko Has Switched Between Heroic & Villainous Personalities As The Sandman Over The Years
One of Spider-Man's earliest and most powerful villains was Flint Marko/Sandman, who was also one of the first villains to defeat Spider-Man. However, as Marko's previous life — as William Baker before he turned into Sandman — was further explored over the years, he began to fluctuate between his evil and good personas.
Sandman spent years working as a hero alongside Silver Sable and her Wild Pack, though he would frequently be forced to return to his former life by other villains due to his love for his adopted daughter, Keemia. However, Sandman hasn't been truly evil for a while as he has helped heroes more than fought against them in recent years.
7 Harley Quinn Has Abandoned Her Former Criminal Lifestyle To Work Alongside The Justice League
While Harley Quinn's debut in the '90s doesn't necessarily make her a "classic" character, her increasing popularity over the years since her first comic appearance as The Joker's hench girlfriend has led Harley down the path from villainy to heroism as she mostly abandoned the evil ways of The Joker.
While Harley Quinn still spent a few years operating as a criminal alongside her BFF and later love Poison Ivy, she has moved so far away from her former criminal lifestyle that she now works alongside the Bat Family and has assisted the Justice League on a number of occasions.
6 While The Venom Symbiote Has Been Used For Villainy, Eddie Brock Reformed From His Evil Beginnings
Like Harley Quinn, Venom's '90s debut almost eliminates him from the classic category of villains, though Eddie Brock's arc from revenge-fueled villain to symbiote-empowered hero and almost Avenger still deserves to be discussed.
The Venom symbiote has been used by other hosts over the years for villainy, but characters like Eddie Brock and Flash Thompson helped the symbiote define its own heroic path. Eddie Brock/Venom's recent heroic actions in events like Absolute Carnage and King In Black have also made him a valuable Avengers ally, which is a far cry from the original brain-eating monster.
5 Black Adam Has Worked With The Justice Society & The Justice League When He's In A Good Mood
Teth-Adam was the ancient choice of the Wizard to become his champion Shazam, though he took the power of the gods and turned on them as Black Adam, which resulted in his imprisonment for millennia. When he was finally freed, he resumed his villainous ways, though over the years Black Adam's rage has been quelled and he has found his heroic side.
While Black Adam's temper frequently saw him return to his villainous roots, more recent storylines saw the development of his own (ill-fated) Black Adam Family, and he has worked alongside teams like the Justice Society before officially joining the Justice League in the Infinite Frontier era.
4 Emma Frost Was The White Queen Of The Hellfire Club Before She Became One Of The X-Men's Leaders
When the powerful telepath known as Emma Frost first appeared, she was a member of the evil Hellfire Club which she eventually ruled over as its White Queen in their various encounters with the X-Men over the years. The White Queen spent years working against the X-Men, though she eventually sought a new path after her mutant students were killed under her watch.
Emma eventually found love with Scott Summers/Cyclops and became a leader of the X-Men, which has extended to her new role with the Hellfire Trading Company in the Krakoan era, though she has occasionally returned to her villainous roots a few times over the years.
3 Deadpool First Appeared As A Villainous Mercenary Before His Popularity Turned Him Into An Anti-Hero
Wade Wilson/Deadpool first appeared in the pages of The New Mutants as an evil mercenary working for a mysterious employer, though as the character started to appear more frequently and his popularity grew, Deadpool quickly began to move away from his assassin lifestyle.
While he still works as a mercenary, he has since adopted a moral code that has moved the character far from his evil debut. Deadpool has gone on to join heroic teams like the Avengers Unity Squad, become a family man, and established close friendships with other heroes like Cable and Spider-Man.
2 Bizarro Was Often Used For Evil Purposes, Though He Also Worked As A Hero With Red Hood & The Outlaws
There have been a few different versions of Bizarro that have appeared over the years, though almost all of them have been a failed clone of Superman who is his polar opposite in almost every way, from powers to moral alignment. Bizarro may think he is helping people, but he is really putting them in danger given the reverse nature of his being.
This has been used by other villains quite a few times over the years to manipulate Bizarro. Bizarro's evilness has been reduced greatly over time, which can be seen when Bizarro operates on his own on Bizarro World. DC Rebirth's Bizarro clone also worked with Red Hood as an Outlaw before he sacrificed his life to become the ruler of Hell in order to save Earth.
1 Magneto Was The X-Men's Greatest Enemy Before He Joined Them As One Of Their Greatest Leaders
The most well-known classic villain who has abandoned his former evil ways for years is the powerful omega-level mutant Magneto, who debuted alongside the X-Men as one of their greatest enemies, which would continue for decades.
While he briefly attempted to reform in the '80s when he took over for Professor Xavier as the New Mutants teacher, it wasn't until the Utopia era that Magneto finally acknowledged his former goal of mutant superiority was flawed. He first began working with Cyclops's X-Men before he eventually moved into his leadership role in the Krakoan era.