Originally Posted by
Dispenser Of Truth
The issue, I think, is that most writers can't conceive of Superman beyond "strong and nice", so they don't realize his villains beyond "strong and mean". The handful of exceptions are the likes of Lex, whose deal cries out for explanation, or Bizarro/Mxy, whose entertainment value is right on the surface. Most of them actually have potentially really interesting gimmicks if they landed in the hands of anyone who knew what to do with them. Just for instance, here's a little Parasite pitch I cooked up once:
I think it’s easy to forget how gut-wrenchingly frightening Rudy Jones should be. Because in spite of having what’s in theory a Rogue-level awful power, complete with also turning into a mass of pulsating purple tumorous flesh that’s generally about 40% gaping mouth in order to better drain people into undead husks, Parasite always seems pretty chipper about his lot in life. He picks up memories. He knows what he’s doing to people, what he’s taking away from them. He’s okay with it.
I think the power-stealing angle with him is played out and uninteresting. Amazo does that, Super-Adaptoid, a dozen different dudes do that. I just want him draining pure energy, getting bigger and badder and grosser and meaner. And in his personality, treating him essentially the way Bendis writes Norman Osborn - not quite self-aware enough to understand he doesn’t care about people, but living in a state of constant, almost masturbatory self-aggrandizing frustration that they won’t just SHUT UP AND GIVE HIM WHAT’S HIS, even if it’s their lives. And it’s not as simple as “if he touches you you’re screwed”. He drains everything around him. The wind stops, the room grows colder. You start to lose your train of thoughts as he draws them out of you like a vacuum, sucking the words out of your caption boxes. You could tell he was there before you saw him from the feeling of going numb and tired if you had enough thoughts left in your head to process it, a human black hole of life and hope.
Most of the Superman villains are monstrous one way or another, but he’s the one who I think should genuinely be scary. Fighting him would be like being in a nightmare, everything feeling unreal and disconnected as your body shuts down, your fighting back only making him stronger. And above all else, he’s frightening because he knows what he’s doing - he sees your dreams and fears and pains and longings and humanity - and doesn’t care, because you’re not him.
Superman looks at you and sees the best. Parasite looks into you and sees dinner.
I think he and most of the other 'struggling' villains - your Brainiacs, Doomsdays, Metallos, Zods, Toymen and so forth - could thrive just fine with minimal tweaking in the right hands.