Magneto is one of the most complicated and beloved villains in all of comics. One of the X-Men's greatest foes, Magneto has been through a lot of changes over the years. Malcolm X to Professor Xavier's Martin Luther King Jr.—Magneto was the ideological opposite that gave Xavier's dream perspective and foil. Much like Malcolm X, Magneto has even mellowed in his later years.

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Magneto has proven to work just as well as a hero as he does a villain, but that doesn't change that he will always be considered one of the X-Men's greatest foes. He's also proven to be a grave danger to any other hero he comes across, his amazing abilities making him into one of the most daunting foes around.

10 Why He's The Greatest: Amazing Costumes

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Costumes are a very important part of any comic character and Magneto has always had some of the best ones. While not all of them have been great, Magneto has had more wonderful looking costumes than most characters as old as he is, with his original costume being one of the most iconic costumes of any character in comics.

The most recognizable part of his look is his helmet and it's probably one of the best helmets in all of fiction, not only looking great but also serving a purpose. The flowing cape gives him just the right touch of ostentation and his costumes' color schemes are usually top-notch as well.

9 Why He Isn't The Greatest: He's A Bit Overexposed

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Magneto has been a part of some truly amazing stories over the years and has become one of the most beloved characters in the X-Men mythos, whether as a villain or a hero. However, this popularity has also been a bit of a disservice to the character, as he's rarely if ever out of the spotlight, especially in recent years.

Popularity can be a double-edged sword; everybody loves Magneto and wants to read about him but there's such a thing as too much. Seeing Magneto all the time robs him of his threat when he's menacing the team and just makes his appearances less special in general, leading to a watering down of the character.

8 Why He's The Greatest: All Of That Power

Magneto X-Men villain

Magneto's control over magnetism makes him one of the most formidable villains in all of comics. The things that Magneto can do with his powers can easily cripple modern society if he so chooses- not only can he control ferrous metals but electromagnetic energy as well, allowing him to detonate electromagnetic pulses that can destroy technology.

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Magneto's control of his power is so fine that he can manipulate the iron in people's blood and his power is so great he can tear apart city blocks with little more than a wave of his hand. With his telepathy dampening helmet and his magnetic shields, Magneto is just about unstoppable.

7 Why He Isn't The Greatest: He Rarely Goes All Out

Uncanny X men- Magneto, lightning hands

Magneto has been through a lot over the years but much of it would never have happened if he was really serious about things. Society pretty much only exists because Magneto wants it to. His powers are so great that if Magneto really went all out, no one would be able to stand against him.

Magneto has rarely used his powers to their utmost extent and that's cost him. For example, as many times as he's threatened to flip the magnetic poles of the Earth, he's only actually tried to do it once and even then he warned the world he was going to do it instead of just doing it. Magneto could have won years ago if he went all out.

6 Why He's The Greatest: Magnetic Personality

Magneto

Over the years, Magneto's charisma and his cause have earned him many followers over the years. It's hard to blame the mutants who follow Magneto; they've spent their lives being discriminated against and hated, so someone offering them the chance to get revenge is going to appeal to them. Whether they be Brotherhood of Evil Mutants or Acolytes, Magneto has given some of the most powerful mutants around a cause to believe in.

Magneto has also been able to win converts to his cause from the X-Men, like Colossus, and had a relationship with Rogue, one that could have blossomed into something if it wasn't for Gambit.

5 Why He Isn't The Greatest: His Teams Are Kind Of Ineffective

Magneto

Even though Magneto has led some rather powerful teams their records of impressive wins is pretty small. In fact, calling it small is kind of a misnomer, since both the Acolytes and Brotherhood have zero wins under Magneto. Now, sure, heroes are supposed to beat the villains but if the villains always lose, it makes them look pathetic.

Magneto's teams may have some powerful members but they're pretty ineffectual, even with Magneto leading them. This makes him look as bad as it does them and doesn't say much for his ability to lead teams.

4 Why He's The Greatest: Magneto Is Right

Magneto Last Days

While Magneto's methods aren't exactly the greatest, it's hard to argue with his position. Humanity is terrible and will try and destroy what is different than them, especially if their survival is at stake. Magneto has experienced the racism of humanity first hand and he's saw nothing that has changed his opinion.

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Magneto is right. Humans will do terrible things to those they consider different and the people with power are often the worst about it. Magneto is such a compelling villain because it's very hard to argue with him and prove him wrong.

3 Why He Isn't The Greatest: Because He's Right

X-Men Magneto Empyre

The righteousness of Magneto is one of the things that make it very hard to root against him. Basically, Magneto is a Holocaust survivor who has suffered the most terrible oppression and violence against him. After that was over, his status as a mutant just began the cycle all over again.

Magneto definitely goes too far at times, but he's actually killed way fewer humans than humans have killed mutants. In comparison to what he's fighting against, Magneto is actually someone to root for. He's had plenty of chances to kill the heroes of the Marvel Universe and yet he never has. Even at his worst, Magneto is very hard to hate.

2 Why He's The Greatest: He's Just So Compelling

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There's a reason Magneto is overexposed- he's one of the most interesting characters in the Marvel Universe. He's a fully fleshed-out individual with an understandable mission and his goals are actually laudable. All of these factors have taken Magneto beyond the realm of a fan-favorite villain to simply a beloved character and he's become one of the most popular X-Men characters of them all.

Magneto is a great character to read about. He makes a lot of sense, can tackle all kinds of foes, and is infinitely entertaining. There are heroes with their own books that aren't a quarter as readable or as interesting as Magneto.

1 Why He Isn't The Greatest: He's Not Exactly A Villain Anymore

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Magneto has gone back and forth between being a hero and being a villain a lot over the years. In recent times, Magneto has pretty much been a member of the X-Men. While he's not exactly a hero, since the X-Men have been more about surviving for most of the last decade than actual heroism, he's not really a villain anymore either.

Magneto has left behind his old ways of trying to destroy humanity and instead has focused on protecting his people. While there's a good chance he might go back to being a villain at some point, even if he was, he's still been a hero much too often and is much too sympathetic to be truly evil.

NEXT: Doctor Doom Vs Magneto: Who Is The Greatest Villain In The Marvel Universe?