Summary
TheMarvel Cinematic Universehas introduced the world to many characters over nearly two decades of content, ranging from iconic superheroes to despicable villains. With the universe spanning various storytelling genres across time, space, and even alternate realities, many powerful characters have come and gone.
Some characters in the Marvel Cinematic Universe have been literal gods living among humans, while others are cosmic entities capable of destroying planets without a second thought. Each of these characters possesses incredible abilities and power levels that significantly impact their storylines and the overall narrative of the MCU.
10Adam Warlock
A Manmade God Before His Prime
Adam Warlockwas created by the Sovereign to be the closest thing to a god for their culture and to have the power to destroy the Guardians of the Galaxy. However, he was awakened too early. InGuardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3, he is depicted as immensely powerful, with most of the Guardians struggling to fight him. He even overpowers someone as strong as Drax.
Even in his immature state, Warlock showcases immense power, but lacks control and emotional stability; however, the potential for him to become more like his comic-book counterpart is still present. This, combined with his childlike nature, resulted in his becoming a foundingmember of the new Guardians of the Galaxywith room for growth in the MCU’s future.
9Thor
The Son Of Odin Lives Up To His Name
Not many can claim they can go head-to-head with the Hulk and survive, butThoris one of those few, already displaying enough strength to live up to his status as a god of thunder. As he advanced in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Thor became even stronger, especially when he unlocked his truegodly powers to summon lightningwithout a conduit like Mjölnir.
Without his traditional weapon, Thor came close to defeating Thor in the Contest of Champions, and then, when wielding the newly forged Stormbreaker, he became even more of a god. In fact, Thor was the one to kill Thanos using Stormbreaker, something even Tony Stark with his most advanced nanotech armor couldn’t do.
8Thanos
Even as the Mad Titan himself,Thanosheld a great amount of power, as shown by the number of worlds he massacred before ever wielding an Infinity Gauntlet. The Chitauri serve him without question, and a villain like Ronan The Accuser served out of fear, which only hinted at his strength as the Infinity Saga slowly but surely built up the character.
In the first ten minutes ofAvengers: Infinity War,Thanos wielded two Infinity Stones, yet he never used them once to defeat the Hulk: just his fists mixed with tactical prowess in a fight.
Even the combined efforts of Thor, Captain America, and Iron Man struggled against the might of Thanos in Avengers: Endgame, with only Scarlet Witch and Captain Marvel dealing any major damage.
7Dormammu
It Took A Time Stone And A Sharp Mind To Stop Him
A denizen of the Dark Dimension,Dormammuis an entity of dark matter itself, devouring worlds after the barrier between his realm and another is broken. Even a sorcerer supreme is nothing in comparison to the might of Dormammu, until Doctor Strange fought the entity with his mind,creating an endless time loopto drive Dormammu to the point of his breaking point, as his immortality could not handle time as a concept.
Dormammu never died in Doctor Strange; instead, he agreed to a bargain and chose not to conquer the Earth-616 dimension. By all accounts, Dormammu could return at any time and poses the potential to become an Avengers-level threat if his pact with Doctor Strange is ever rendered void.
6Scarlet Witch
Wanda Nearly Destroyed Thanos With Chaos Magic
Chaos magic combined with enhancements from the Mind Stone, Wanda Maximoff has become known for her immense power as theScarlet Witch, who has spent timeas both a hero and a villainin the Marvel Cinematic Universe. From her first appearance inAvengers: Age of Ultron, Wanda was able to fight off any Avenger thrown her way, either through powerful telekinetic or telepathic abilities.
InAvengers: Infinity War, Wanda destroyed the Time Stone, and inAvengers: Endgame, she would have destroyed Thanos had he not commanded his forces to rain fire on the battlefield. Later, she would use her power to manifest an alternate reality with Hex, featuring her lover Vision and two sons. When she devolved into a villain in the Multiverse Saga, no one was able to thwart her except herself.
5Sentry
Humanity Created Its Greatest Hero And Villain In One
In an attempt to create her own personal superhero to control, Valentina de Fontaine approved the experiment that would turn Bob Reynolds into theSentry,who debuted in Marvel’sThunderbolts*. On the one hand, she was successful at creating someone stronger than all the Avengers combined, but she also created a dangerous villain that nearly wiped out New York City in less than half an hour after rising.
Bob Reynolds’ childhood trauma created an alternate personality known as The Void, which uses his powers to capture people in a shadowy realm of constant shame. As the Sentry, Botodidn’t receive a single scratch from the Thunderbolts* throwing everything at him, featuring immense strength, flight, matter manipulation, and more that allowed him to overpower the Thunderbolts* without even trying.
4Captain Marvel
Even Thanos Couldn’t Hurt The Cosmic Avenger
Thanks to her DNA being infused with the power of the Tesseract, Carol Danvers was instantly transformed intoCaptain Marveland, thus far,the most powerful of the Avengers. The Supreme Intelligence and the Kree Empire were frightened of what she could do with her powers, so they used inhibitors and lies to keep her under their control in the war against the Skrulls.
When fully powered, Captain Marvel was able to wipe out an entire fleet of Kree ships with ease, only using a fraction of her strength. In Avengers: Endgame, she was shown taking full-blown punches and headbutts from Thanos, and she didn’t move an inch. It only took the power of the Power Stone to do any harm, and she recovered fast.
3Arishem
The Original Creator Of The Marvel Universe
Celestials are practically gods, using their essence to create galaxies and the lifeforms within them.Arishemis the Prime Celestial, who created the Eternals and the Deviants for his own quest of expanding the universe, with each planet being a planet that would spawn a new Celestial and continue the process.
While Arishem’s power is mostly ambiguous in Eternals since he dispatches the titular team of artificial beings out to do his bidding. However, at the end, when Tiamut is destroyed, Arishem is quick to pull the remaining Eternals off Earth, acting as if his plan being foiled was only a minor inconvenience.
2Death
No One Can Truly Stop Death
That’s not a codename or a means to make others fear her; she is the literal grim reaper known asDeath. She poses as a green witch named Rio, but in actuality, can manipulate reality itself while wielding the same kind of magicas witches like Agatha Harkness, but far more powerful. She can heal, teleport, read minds, reap souls, manipulate the weather, and so much more, making her an entity that even gods feared.
One of the big twists ofAgatha All Alongis that the titular anti-villain and Wiccan were powerless in comparison to Death, even at their most powerful states. Death wins the final battle of that series by letting Agatha choose between herself or Wiccan, leading to Death claiming Agatha’s soul with a kiss, creating a proper balance.
1Loki
From God Of Mischief To The God Of Stories
Even as the Asgardian trickster,Lokipossessed impressive powers, including his skills in illusions and super strength. However, hisvariant from the Disney+ serieshas managed to surpass all others. By becoming an agent of the Time Variance Agency, he gains access to advanced technology, enhancing his already formidable abilities.
In the second season ofLoki, the titular anti-hero would fully become a hero to save the multiverse from falling apart. Upon entering the Loom, Loki would finally achieve godhood and become an eternal guardian of all existence in the form of a multiversal tree. The result would rename him the God of Stories, burdening him with a glorious purpose.
