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Not all heroes are as heroic as they seem... Join us as we count down the most shocking, ruthless, and downright villainous acts ever committed by Marvel's merry mutants! From psychic violations to galaxy-level destruction, these X-Men proved that wearing a uniform doesn't always make you one of the good guys. Which of these crimes shocked you the most?
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00:06Welcome to WatchMojo and today we're counting down our picks for the worst acts committed
00:11by Marvel's Merry Mutants.
00:13We'll be talking about major deaths and twists from iconic X-Men storylines so beware
00:19of spoilers.
00:26Number 20 Emma Frost's mind controlled the UN to ensure Krakoa's acceptance, House
00:31of X.
00:31Number 5 After years of struggling to coexist with humanity,
00:36mutantkind decided it was time for a new approach.
00:38The island of Krakoa was established as a sovereign nation for mutants, but gaining international
00:43recognition was another matter entirely.
00:45Convincing the world to welcome a society full of dangerous beings was never going
00:50to be easy.
00:51The X-Men first tried to win over skeptical nations by offering miracle drugs that could
00:55extend lifespans and cure dementia.
00:57Even then, that wasn't enough.
00:59So Emma Frost's mind controlled the UN into accepting Krakoa.
01:03Peace may have been their goal, but coercion was not a promising start of this new era.
01:09Number 19 Unleashing Onslaught X-Men number 53
01:12It takes a truly spectacular mistake to create one of Marvel's most dangerous villains and
01:18Professor X managed to do just that.
01:20During a confrontation with Magneto, Charles Xavier shuts down his mind but created something
01:25sinister from the physical fallout.
01:27The darkest aspects of Xavier and Magneto's personalities merged into a psionic entity called
01:33Onslaught.
01:33He quickly became a catastrophic threat, taking control of New York and unleashing destruction
01:38on a massive scale.
01:40His rampage even resulted in the deaths of members of the Avengers and Fantastic Four.
01:44Onslaught would later return after his first defeat to threaten mutantkind once again, making
01:49his creation one of Xavier's most disastrous mistakes.
01:52Number 18 Rogue Stole Carol Danvers' Powers and Memories Avengers Annual Number 10
01:58At this point, Rogue has been a hero for most of her existence.
02:01But there are plenty of things to remember from her time as a villain.
02:12Before becoming an X-Men, she was a member of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants.
02:16Her time with them had Rogue committing several crimes with her power absorption abilities.
02:20Her most infamous attack targeted Ms. Marvel, whom Rogue defeated by stealing her powers, absorbing
02:26her memories, and throwing her off a bridge.
02:28This left Rogue with a permanent power-up and Carol with a new civilian life.
02:32You knew what would happen next!
02:34I had Ms. Marvel's super strength and her ability to fly, permanently!
02:38The two heroines have since made up and become good friends.
02:41But Rogue's actions left scars that continue to affect them both.
02:44Number 17 Jean Grey Mind Controls Everyone Spider-Man Brand New Day
02:49Professor X has crossed plenty of ethical boundaries with his telepathy.
02:53But the MCU Jean Grey's violation of free will is not so forgivable.
02:57Yes, she did what she had to do to save her sister, but that doesn't really make what she
03:02did acceptable.
03:03At one point, she controls an innocent man and walks him into traffic.
03:07She also uses her powers to essentially force MJ into kissing someone against her will.
03:11Those choices are difficult to defend.
03:13Even when Jean believes she's doing the right thing.
03:16It's a good thing we know that she has it in her to be a hero.
03:19Because the things she does here are downright villainous.
03:23Number 16 Professor X Mind Wipe Reed Richards X-Men
03:26The Fantastic Four Number 4
03:28How far would you go to protect the people you love?
03:31That's the driving question at the heart of this X-Men and Fantastic Four crossover.
03:36When Franklin Richards is invited to live on Krakoa,
03:38Reed Richards refuses to let his son leave without a fight.
03:41Reed crosses a line when he uses a device to suppress Franklin's mutant gene.
03:46Fearing that it could be used as a weapon against all mutants, Xavier takes matters into
03:50his own hands and wipes all knowledge of the machine from Reed's mind.
03:54This effectively prevents the machine from ever being built again.
03:58Xavier may have saved his people from a future threat, but he had to violate a friend's mind in
04:03the process.
04:04Number 15 Magneto Paralyzes Charles X-Men First Class
04:08The Magneto we meet in this film is already a dangerous man,
04:11but he still believes his violence can be justified.
04:14Listen to me very carefully, my friend.
04:18Killing sure will not bring you peace.
04:23Peace was never an option.
04:25His willingness to kill those he considers deserving eventually leads to one of the greatest tragedies of
04:30his life. While attempting to destroy a fleet of human warships,
04:33Magneto accidentally deflects a bullet into Charles Xavier's spine.
04:37The impact snaps Magneto out of his rage as he tries to save his friend by removing the bullet,
04:42but the damage is already done.
04:44Please.
04:47She didn't do this, Zach.
04:50You did.
04:52Xavier is left permanently paralyzed and Magneto leaves his friend behind.
04:57It's a major deviation from the comics, but it gives these two's complicated friendship
05:01an even more tragic turning point.
05:03Number 14 Wolverine Letting X-Men Die and Kills Innocent People
05:07Deadpool and Wolverine
05:08Wolverine being reluctant to play the hero isn't new for the character.
05:12Throughout the films, he often goes into seclusion only to be pulled back in.
05:16But you have outdone yourself and brought me the worst Wolverine.
05:20What do you mean the worst one?
05:21Mr. Wilson, this Wolverine let down his entire world.
05:27He's the stuff of legend, but not in a good way.
05:29And what he did?
05:31Well, some things are just beyond forgiveness.
05:34This time, however, his refusal of the call has devastating consequences.
05:39Too bitter and prideful to embrace the X-Men,
05:41he refuses to join the team and instead spends his days drinking alone at bars.
05:45Then, while Logan is intoxicated, mutant hunters attack and massacre the X-Men.
05:50His overwhelming guilt sends him into a rage, lashing out not only at the people responsible,
05:55but innocent civilians as well.
05:56I started killing.
05:58And I couldn't stop. I didn't want to stop.
06:03All those bad men.
06:09It's not just the bad ones.
06:12My little animal.
06:14His actions turn the world against mutant kind and leave him consumed by regret.
06:18It's easy to see why this Wolverine earned a reputation for being the worst one in the multiverse.
06:24Number 13.
06:25Cyclops ordered a teenage mutant to kill a bunch of Hellfire Club soldiers.
06:28X-Men Schism Number 3.
06:30After M-Day nearly wiped out mutantkind,
06:33Cyclops became convinced that the X-Men needed to operate like a military force.
06:37With mutantkind now dangerously close to extinction,
06:40Cyclops finally shed his Boy Scout persona and believed that he could no longer afford to hold back,
06:46a mentality that unfortunately extended to mutant children.
06:49During the confrontation with the Hellfire Club,
06:51Cyclops ordered a teenage mutant Oya to use her powers against the humans,
06:55effectively putting her in the position to kill or be killed.
06:58For many X-Men, this was the moment Scott went too far.
07:02His willingness to turn young mutants into soldiers helped drive a wedge between him
07:06and Wolverine, creating a rift that would take years to heal.
07:09Number 12.
07:10The Fall of X
07:11Fall of the House of X
07:12Number 4.
07:13The Krakowin era forced the X-Men to make some horrifying decisions.
07:17Many characters had to make sacrifices in order to save the mutant nation,
07:21but Charles Xavier's actions proved to be the most disturbing.
07:24With Orcus on the verge of destroying mutantkind,
07:27Xavier agreed to help the organization control the world in exchange for sparing mutants.
07:31From there, he commits one terrible act after another.
07:35Charles kills humans at Orcus' command, strips the world leaders of their minds,
07:40and even provides the organization with the world's nuclear codes.
07:43Some of Charles' victims were later revealed to be brainless clones created to help him gain Orcus' trust.
07:48But even so, the atrocities he committed leave a stain neither humans nor mutants will forgive.
07:54Number 11.
07:55Magneto removes Wolverine's adamantium.
07:57X-Men Number 25.
07:59The Master of Magnetism may have started as one of the X-Men's greatest enemies,
08:03but there were times where he fought alongside them.
08:06Been in a lot of wars, but the brave always die first.
08:12Unfortunately, repeated attacks against mutantkind pushed him back toward villainy,
08:16leading him to battle the X-Men once again.
08:18One such confrontation nearly had Wolverine finally killing Magneto.
08:22However, the metal manipulator responded by tearing the adamantium from Logan's skeleton.
08:30No! Magnus! For the love of God, don't do this!
08:35The injury forces Wolverine into a long recovery where he becomes increasingly savage and animalistic.
08:40He would eventually regain his metal claws, but this moment showed how far
08:44Magneto had fallen and how little mercy he had left for fellow mutants.
08:48Number 10.
08:49Beast helps destroy a parallel Earth, New Avengers.
08:52The Illuminati is a secret think tank made up of Marvel's smartest and most influential heroes.
08:57Their greatest challenge came when they faced the threat of incursions,
09:01catastrophic events where two realities collide and destroy both Earths.
09:04With their own world at stake, the Illuminati concluded that the
09:08only way to survive was to destroy other Earths before they could collide with theirs.
09:12Beast wasn't solely responsible for this decision, but he helped develop the technology needed to
09:17destroy entire universes. This led to billions of innocent lives being erased so that their world
09:22could live. It was an impossible choice, but helping build a weapon capable of mass universal destruction
09:28is still pretty horrifying.
09:31Number 9. Wolverine's Victims Get Their Revenge.
09:34Wolverine Number 14.
09:36Wolverine has killed countless enemies throughout his life, but one particular massacre forced Logan to
09:41confront the horrifying consequences of his violence. The Red Right Hand was an organization
09:45made up of people whose loved ones have been killed by Wolverine. Among them were a man whose
09:50pregnant wife died during Logan's battle with the Hulk and a boy whose mother was killed when
09:54Wolverine was being mind-controlled. Seeking revenge, the group tricks Logan into fighting a
09:59team of mercenaries called the Mongrels. He slaughters them without hesitation, only to discover the
10:04terrible truth afterward. Every member of the Mongrels was one of his children. The event didn't change
10:10who he is, but it did make him look back on his life with regret.
10:14Number 8. Magneto disrupts the Earth's magnetic field and nearly kills everyone. X-Men Apocalypse.
10:20Magneto can never seem to catch a break. After suffering tragedy after tragedy,
10:25the death of his wife and daughter finally pushes him over the edge. With his powers enhanced and nothing left
10:31to
10:31lose, Eric joins Apocalypse and the other horsemen in their plan to reshape civilization.
10:36You don't know your own strength, but I do.
10:43Rage down. Feel the metal in the ground. Rage as deep as you can.
10:52Magneto arguably causes the most destruction when he manipulates Earth's magnetic field.
10:57The effects cause catastrophe on a global scale. Vehicles are lifted into the sky,
11:02bridges collapse, and the entire skyscrapers are torn apart as cities descend into chaos.
11:08The film never gives a precise death toll, but it's safe to assume that thousands,
11:12if not millions, could have died. You betrayed me. No, I betrayed them.
11:20Number 7. Gavit Causes a Mutant Massacre. Uncanny X-Men number 350.
11:24This X-Men storyline remains one of the darkest chapters in X-Men history,
11:28and Gambit was responsible for helping set an emotion. In this event, Mr. Sinister hires a group
11:34of assassins called the Marauders to exterminate the Morlocks, a community of mutants whose physical
11:39mutations prevent them from living openly among humans. Gambit assembles the Marauders for Sinister
11:44and follows them to the Morlock home. Remy was unaware of their goal, but he did know he was
11:49leading killers into a den of innocent people. The resulting massacre claims the lives of
11:54hundreds and one of the most brutal attacks mutantkind had ever suffered. Once the X-Men
11:59discovered Gambit's connection to the tragedy, they expel him from the team.
12:03Number 6. Professor X Erasing Memory of an Entire Dead X-Men Team,
12:07X-Men Daily Genesis. When the original X-Men are captured,
12:11Professor X recruits new members to rescue them. They succeed and form a new roster that's
12:15essentially the X-Men as we know them today. That's how the classic story goes,
12:19but Daily Genesis revealed a much darker version of events. Before recruiting Wolverine, Storm,
12:25and the others, Xavier had actually sent another group of inexperienced mutants into battle. They
12:31managed to rescue Cyclops, but the mission ended in disaster when the entire team was slaughtered.
12:36Charles then erased the team from everyone's memories to prevent them from discovering what
12:40happened. Xavier basically sent an unprepared group to their deaths, then hid the troop by rewriting the
12:46minds of those close to him. That is an awful abuse of power.
12:51Number 5. Beast Lobotomizes a Man to Forcefully Take Over Terra Verde
12:54X-Force. When the mutant nation of Krakoa formed, Beast was made the head of X-Force,
13:00which was the X-Men's version of the CIA. Unfortunately, Beast's methods became increasingly disturbing.
13:06Determined to protect Krakoa's interests, Beast lobotomizes the son of Terra Verde's president,
13:11believing that the drastic measure would help secure mutant sovereignty. Instead,
13:16the situation completely spirals out of control. The man's body becomes infected and ultimately
13:21spreads a biotech plague through Terra Verde, transforming its human population into plant-like
13:26creatures. What makes this especially disturbing is how cold Beast became. In just a few issues,
13:33Beast went from the lovable brains of the X-Men to its secret mad scientists.
13:37Number 4. Cyclops Killed Professor X and Went Dark Phoenix.
13:41Avengers vs X-Men 11. This comic saw the Avengers and X-Men on opposite sides of a conflict over
13:48the
13:48Phoenix Force and its new host, Hope Summers. Cyclops believed the cosmic entity could save
13:53mutantkind from the brink of extinction, while Captain America feared it would destroy the planet.
13:58Things get complicated when Scott and four other X-Men bond with the Phoenix, creating the Phoenix 5.
14:03Their immense power corrupts their judgment and when Professor X confronts Cyclops,
14:08they engage in a psychic battle that ends with Charles' death. Watching Scott murder his mentor
14:13and former friend was heartbreaking. More importantly, it showed how far Cyclops had fallen from the noble
14:19hero he once was. Number 3. Magneto Declares War X-Men 97.
14:24When Magnus first became the X-Men's new leader, we questioned whether the former villain could truly
14:29embrace Charles Xavier's dream. Magneto, any dream worth having is a dream worth dying for.
14:35We thought we'd perish before seeing the day when humanity accepted our people.
14:40Like Moses in the Promised Land, we would carry the dream, but never live it.
14:46For a time, he seemed to prove the doubters wrong. Then, the Sentinel attack on Genosha slaughters nearly
14:52every mutant on the island. Consumed by grief and rage, Magneto abandons his peaceful approach and
14:57declares war on humanity. His first strike was a worldwide electromagnetic blackout that plunged the
15:03world into chaos and killed thousands. That was only the beginning of his plan. Magneto also begins
15:09disrupting the Earth's magnetic field, giving humanity less than 12 hours before the protective
15:13field completely collapses. Had the X-Men failed to stop him, Magneto could have doomed every living
15:28thing on Earth. Number 2. Wolverine Kills the X-Men
15:32Wolverine 70. Old Man Logan is considered one of the character's bleakest stories. In an alternate
15:37timeline, supervillains have conquered America and nearly wiped out the entire superhero community.
15:42When an army attacks the X-Mansion, Wolverine fights back to protect his fellow mutants.
15:48Then comes a horrifying twist. Logan discovers that the assault was an illusion by the Spider-Man
15:53villain Mysterio, making him believe the attackers were supervillains. In reality,
15:57Wolverine had slaughtered the X-Men. Unable to join his friends because of his immortality,
16:02Logan swears to never use his claws again. The movie Logan has its own take on the grisly moment,
16:07only in this version, it was Charles Xavier who was responsible for the massacre.
16:13Before we continue, be sure to check out WatchMojo's 24-hour livestream.
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16:31The Dark Phoenix saga is perhaps the most famous story in X-Men history, and it also features the
16:36most horrific act ever committed by one of the team. After Jean Grey becomes overwhelmed by the
16:41Phoenix Force, her psyche fractures and she becomes the Dark Phoenix. Her immense power allows her to
16:48consume the energy of a nearby star, but the consequences are catastrophic. Her actions
16:52destroy a nearby planet and kill billions of innocent beings. Jean instantly becomes a galactic
16:58threat with entire civilizations demanding her death. Ultimately, Jean sacrifices herself to atone for
17:04the genocide, and even after returning to life, the consequences of her destruction still haunts her.
17:10Which X-Men would you trust the least after seeing their crimes?
17:13Tell us who you wouldn't want to be around in the comments below,
17:16and don't forget to like and subscribe for more WatchMojo videos.
17:19Wonderful!
17:19You