One series that was part of the backbone of the original DC Comics Animated Universe was the hit show Superman: The Animated Series. Premiering in 1996 and running for several seasons, the show was a direct successor to the television show Batman: The Animated Series.

Those two shows would help bring about other classics like Batman Beyond, Static Shock, Justice League and Justice League: Unlimited. Yet Superman has always been one of the worlds most iconic superheroes, and this show helped form the backbone of the universe. In honor of this, here are the ten best villains of the show.

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10 Metallo

One of the first villains that needs to be mentioned has to be John Corben, otherwise known as Metallo. At one time he was one of the most sought after mercenaries and hitmen in the world. He was hired to steal a battle suit from LexCorp, and Lois Lane discovered him and his team.

Superman stopped him from hurting Lois, and the two battled in the LexCorp suite until Superman stopped him. He later became ill and Luthor offered to cure him, putting his mind into the body of an android with a Kryptonite heart. This created the villainous Metallo.

9 Livewire

A major villain that was super popular in the series was Livewire. Formerly a shock jockey named Leslie Willis, Leslie made her fame by denouncing and ridiculing Superman publicly on her show in Metropolis. During a party celebrating her anniversary, Superman tried to save her from a severe lightning storm, but the bolt arched off him and hit Leslie.

Waking up to discover her changed appearance and newfound power, she blamed Superman for her condition and went on a rampage in Metropolis, vowing to destroy him at all costs. She later teamed up with Parasite to take on the hero.

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8 Mr. Mxyzptlk

One of the most bizarre yet powerful foes Superman faced in the series had to be Mr. Mxyzptlk. An imp from the fifth dimension, Mr. Mxyzptlk grew tired of his life and was bored, and after centuries of coming to the Third Dimension to pose as genies and other magical creatures, he set his sights on Superman.

A being capable of rewriting and altering reality as he saw fit, Superman managed to trick Mr. Mxyzptlk several times into saying or writing his name backwards, which sent him back to the fifth dimension for ninety days, causing anger for Mr. Mxyzptlk.

7 Parasite

A powerful foe for Superman in the series was none other than Parasite. Originally a janitor at S.T.A.R. Labs, Rudy Jones found himself in deep with some bookies whom he owed money, and so he agreed to steal chemicals from the lab to wipe away his debt.

When the robbery goes wrong and he is doused in chemicals, he is left on the road alone. He discovers he is able to drain the energy of anyone near him and replicate their memories and voice. He was able to drain Superman’s powers, but the effects were only temporary.

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6 Toyman

One of the creepier and sadder villains of Superman’s rogues has to be Toyman. In the series, Toyman was Winslow Schott Jr, who’s father was a kind toymaker who was tricked by his financier Bruno Mannheim and was sent to prison, where he later passed away. Spending years in the Foster Care system, Winslow became obsessed with recapturing his lost childhood.

Donning a mask and calling himself Toyman, Winslow sought revenge against Mannheim, and kidnapped Lois Lane when she wrote a bad article about his crimes. Superman saved Mannheim and Lois from Toyman, but the villain escaped and would return.

5 Bizarro

One truly “bizarre” villain of the show was none other than the aptly named Bizarro. One of the first clones created by Lex Luthor to create an army of Supermen, the clone acted and looked like Superman. However the process to create the clone proved to be faulty and the clone mutated and devolved into Bizarro.

Believing he was a hero, his “heroics” often led to near disasters, with everything villainous thing he did being thought of as heroics to the villain. Superman not only stopped him, but helped Bizarro by eventually giving Bizarro a planet to protect as its Superman.

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4 Jax-Ur

One of the show’s most unique villains has to be Jax-Ur. In the comics, Jax-Ur was a mad scientist of Krypton who was banished to the Phantom Zone after accidentally destroying one of Krypton’s moons. However on the show his character was repurposed to the origins of classic villain General Zod.

The show presented Jax-Ur as the former military leader of Krypton, who attempted to seize control but was stopped by Jor-El and sent to the Phantom Zone. Released on Earth by his second in command Mala, they attempted to conquer Earth at least two times.

3 Lex Luthor

Of course how could a show about Superman not have his most feared nemesis and rival be none other than human genius, billionaire and alien hating villain, Lex Luthor. Orchestrating several crimes against the Man of Steel in an effort to prove he was the superior being instead of Superman, Luthor always managed to avoid jail time.

Assisted by his loyal employee Mercy Graves, Lex used the wealth of his company LexCorp to fund the creation of villains like Bizarro and Metallo, and would become a rivaled foe on shows like Justice League and the sequel, Justice League: Unlimited.

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2 Brainiac

The second most powerful being on the show had to be Brainiac. The villainous AI was retconned for the show, becoming instead the planet Krypton’s massive supercomputer who monitored and controlled every aspect of the planet. When Jor-El discovered Brainiac hid the knowledge of the planet’s impending destruction, he attempted to stop him but was too late.

Brainiac escaped the planet’s destruction, going on to absorb the knowledge of worlds and then destroy them. He attempted this on Earth, using LexCorp to build a body to house himself. Lex and Superman were forced to work together and stop him.

1 Darkseid

Superman’s greatest foe on the show was none other than Darkseid. The tyrannical leader of Apokolips, he was at war with New Genesis for thousands of years, until an uneasy truce was declared. Still seeking galactic conquest and the Anti-Life Equation, he took notice of Superman and Earth and sought to take it for himself.

He had many plots on Earth. He supplied weapons to Intergang, sent Desaad to Earth to destroy Superman, revealed himself after his son Kalibak battled the hero, and later abducted and brainwashed the hero into attacking Earth, pushing Superman’s limits and his sanity as well.

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