The
Masters of Evil are a
supervillain group who first appeared in
Marvel Comics The Avengers #6.
Originally organized by escaped Nazi scientist
Baron Heinrich Zemo to battle
Captain America and the
Avengers, the Masters of Evil are one of the
Marvel Universe's first major ongoing
alliances of supervillains. Constantly battling the Avengers, most of the Masters membership have a particular
hatred of the supergroup. The Masters of Evil have
regrouped several times under a few different leaders over the years. There have been
eight incarnations of the group to date, led by
Heinrich Zemo,
Ultron,
Egghead,
Helmut Zemo,
Doctor Octopus, Helmut Zemo in the guise of
Citizen V, and the
Crimson Cowl, respectively. The first, second, third, fifth, and seventh Masters teams are all
disbanded. Helmut Zemo's Masters (the
fourth) went
underground and assumed a new
guise as the celebrated super-heroic
Thunderbolts team (listed as the sixth incarnation of the Masters), amassing resources and goodwill until such time as they were ready to
conquer the world. During the Thunderbolts existence, The Crimson Cowl organized a new supervillain team to battle the
mysterious overnight heroes. The fact that they
dubbed themselves the Masters of Evil was of particular personal interest to Zemo. After many battles with the Thunderbolts, the Cowl's group remains
at large. When
Baron Zemo's plan was foiled by the return of the Avengers from their assumed
graves, he escaped with a small
core group of Thunderbolts. If these villains will return as a new incarnation of the Masters of Evil remains to be seen. The common goals of all the
iterations of the team remain the same: the pursuit of
criminal gain, and the assurance of that goal through the
destruction of the Avengers.
What makes them the Masters?
The first Masters brought most of
New York to a standstill with Zemo's
Adhesive X, then captured the Avengers and held them for
ransom. Egghead's Masters enacted a scheme that framed Avenger
Henry Pym, making it look like he was their leader. One of the Masters greatest successes was when they captured the
Avengers Mansion under Baron Helmut Zemo (as seen in Avengers #273-277). They caused heavy
damage, destroyed most of the Avengers'
personal belongings, administered a near-
fatal beating on Avenger
Hercules and sadistically
tortured the Avengers' butler, Edwin
Jarvis.
Doctor Octopus set his Masters on the Avengers Mansion while the
Infinity War occupied the team. Their goal of robbing the mansion of
scientific equipment was foiled by the
Guardians of the Galaxy, but not until after quite a bit of damage. The Thunderbolts/6th Masters tried and narrowly failed to
take over the world, but only after enacting the greatest
confidence scam in history. What more could you ask for in a group of supervillains?
Team Rosters
Masters of Evil I
Lead by
Baron Heinrich Zemo
Enchantress
Executioner
Radioactive Man
Black Knight I
Melter
First appeared in Avengers #6
Masters of Evil II
Lead by
Ultron
Klaw
Radioactive Man
Melter
Whirlwind
First appeared in Avengers #54
Masters of Evil III
Lead by
Egghead
Moonstone
Scorpion
Radioactive Man
Tigershark
Beetle
Whirlwind
The Shocker
First appeared in Avengers #222
Masters of Evil IV
Lead by
Baron Helmut Zemo
Moonstone
Goliath
Absorbing Man
Titania
Fixer
Mister Hyde
Tigershark
Wrecker
Thunderball
Bulldozer
Piledriver
Blackout
Screaming Mimi
Grey Gargoyle
Whirlwind
Yellowjacket II
First appeared in Avengers #270
Masters of Evil V
Lead by
Doctor Octopus
Absorbing Man
Titania
Gargantua
Powderkeg
Puff Adder
Oddball
Jack Hammer
Yellowjacket II
First appeared in Guardians of the Galaxy #28
Masters of Evil VI / Thunderbolts
Lead by
Baron Helmut Zemo / Citizen V
Fixer /
Techno
Goliath /
Atlas
Screaming Mimi /
Songbird
Beetle / M.A.C.H.-I
Moonstone /
Meteorite
First appeared in Thunderbolts #1
Masters of Evil VII
Lead by The Crimson Cowl
Man-Killer
Tigershark
Klaw
Cyclone II
Flying Tiger
M'Baku, the Man-Ape
Boomerang
Constrictor
Bison
Quicksand
Shockwave
Scorcher
Cardinal
Supercharger
Sunstroke
Shatterfist
The Eel
Dragonfly
Slyde
Joystick
Icemaster
Lodestone
Aqueduct
Blackwing
First appeared in Thunderbolts #3
Masters of Evil VIII
Lead by The Crimson Cowl
Black Mamba
Cardinal
Cyclone II
Gypsy Moth
Hydro-Man
Machinesmith
Man-Killer
First appeared in Thunderbolts #64