'The Ultimate Villian'
Lock your doors and bar your windows, because that terrifying monstrosity to the left of this article is what film fans consider the ultimate comic book villain.
To mark the release of The Dark Knight Rises, LOVEFiLM – Europe's largest subscription service streaming movies and TV episodes over the Internet and sending DVDs by post – asked 3,500 film fans to identify what makes The Ultimate Villain by voting for the best headgear, outfit, accessories and superpowers from villains featured on the big screen.
Using the results they worked with a comic book artist to bring this devious delinquent to life.
The Ultimate Villain would have the head and outfit of Batman’s arch nemesis The Joker, with the colour of his eccentric suit influenced by Spider-Man’s extra-terrestrial foe, Venom.
Not only this, but he would have the mechanical arms of Dr Octopus, another of the Spidey’s enemies, the cape of Fantastic Four villain Doctor Doom and the mask of Hellboy’s antagonist Kroenen.
At the risk of going completely nuts, the fans also decided to give him the ability to change his appearance at a whim like the shape shifting blue mutant Mystique, along with the capability to controlling metal with his mind like Magneto, both villains of X-Men fame.
Talk about the kitchen sink approach to crime and wickedness.
Finding out they’d created a monster, LOVEFiLM then asked their fans to make a hero who must battle this beast.
The ideal crusader/poor sap would don the mask of vigilante Watchmen member Rorschach to safeguard his identity, protect his torso with Batman’s suit and fend off foes with Wolverine’s metal claws.
The Ultimate Superhero would also be kitted out with Batman’s super-fast, state-of-the-art Batmobile as well as the Dark Knight’s utility belt. Seems the people really do like the Caped Crusader as much as we think they do.
Helen Cowley, Editor of LOVEFiLM, commented; “With so many great superhero films out this summer we wanted to find out what film fans thought would make the ultimate enemy. Any caped crusader would have their hands full if they came face to face with The Ultimate Villain. Even The Ultimate Superhero would struggle to fend off this foe whose powers and accessories make for a very potent mix of weaponry!”
Jack Lawrence, the comic artist who brought characters to life also said; “Bringing The Ultimate Villain to life, a character who has been created by film fans as the best of the best, was an incredible experience. The end result is one very dangerous and menacing adversary.”
Tagged in Batman