Top 10 Superheroes Too Dark For The MCU

Hit-Monkey’s here to kill bad guys and eat bananas. And he’s all out of bananas. His wild origins began when an unnamed professional hitman was saved by a tribe of Japanese snow-monkeys. While the tribe were willing to aid the hitman back to health, one monkey objected, leading to his exile. When the entire tribe was slaughtered alongside the hitman, “Hit-Monkey” was born. It’s weird, but don’t let the absurdity distract you from the fact that Hit-Monkey’s a straight-up killer. While he’s got his own animated Hulu show, it’s worth noting that its second season is no longer marketed under the “Marvel” brand. Regardless of whatever the reason is, you can’t help but feel like Marvel’s putting some distance between themselves and the armed primate.

While most of us know Ghost Rider because of Johnny Blaze, what if we told you his younger brother was also a Ghost Rider? That’s Danny Ketch, and everywhere Danny goes, trouble always follows. He inadvertently became Ghost Rider when he and his sister Barbara were caught in the middle of a gang war between the Kingpin and Deathwatch. Amidst the chaos he stumbled upon a special motorcycle which turned him into the Spirit of Vengeance. As Ghost Rider he’s had no shortage of battles against demons, whether they’re from Hell or a bottle! The inclusion of any Ghost Rider in the MCU guarantees seeing some hardcore stuff. But the demon-plagued world of Danny Ketch might be just a bit too heavy for casual audiences.

To no one’s surprise, the guy who’s only known for being the Son of Satan probably isn’t the most marketable superhero of them all. He and his sister Satana are the children of Marduk Kurios, a Hell Lord who may or may not be Satan. Honestly, Marvel is really confusing when it comes to deciding all of that stuff. While his father is a devilish entity, his mother was a mere mortal. Overall, Daimon has his roots tethered to the occult, he even has a freaking pentagram on his chest for a birthmark! Daimon briefly had a Hulu tv series not canon to the MCU, but since its cancellation we don’t expect him popping up on anyone’s screens for a while.

Illyana Rasputina aka Magik has never had an easy life. For starters, her and her brother Piotr (better known as Colossus) are mutants, and that’s difficult to navigate on its own. But everything changed when Illyana was kidnapped as a child by a demon and taken to Limbo. While she was rescued by the X-Men and only gone for a few seconds on Earth, time worked differently in the Otherplace. Meaning Ilyana spent years in the demonic realm and eventually returned as a teenager. If that wasn’t traumatic enough, Illyana also has a demonic form known as the Darkchylde. This dark side can manifest when she taps into dark magic or experiences intense emotions. You’d be wise not to cross Magik!

Robbie Baldwin was originally a hotheaded teenage superhero named Speedball who was part of a team called the New Warriors. But when they tried to stop some villains as part of their reality show, the bad guy Nitro killed all of the New Warriors and over 600 civilians in an explosion. Robbie was the only hero who survived what became known as the Stamford incident (the catalyst for Marvel’s “Civil War”!). He then became Penance and had a suit lined inside with spikes that made him suffer. Penance is kind of an edgelord, but his past is still a tragic one. Maybe Robbie Baldwin’s “Speedball” persona can show up in the MCU one day. But we doubt we’ll see Penance strolling onto the screen!

Not quite a hero but not quite a villain either. Paladin operates in that morally gray sweet spot as a mercenary typically working for whoever’s willing to give him the biggest payday. We’d like to believe he’s a character who can change his ways. As he’s been shown in the past helping out many street-level heroes. He was even a part of the Heroes for Hire! But he was also part of Norman Osborn’s Thunderbolts team. The violent way in which he operates and his tendency to backstab others has also gotten him flak from heroes like Daredevil, Spider-Man and more. Ultimately Paladin’s a bit of a chaotic mess.

Kaine Parker was the Jackal’s first ever clone of Peter Parker. However, Kaine’s body was in a state of deterioration and he was ultimately rejected. His anger soon quickly turned him against the world. In the numerous times he’s crossed paths with his genetic brothers Ben Reilly and Peter Parker, he’s tried to kill them! While Kaine cleaned up his act and became a hero, there’s no doubt there’s still a darkness inside him. His entire existence is also a reminder of the critically-panned “Clone Saga” storyline (the less we say about that the better). It’s not impossible to see the MCU’s Peter run into some clones. But this much extra drama might not be worth it for Marvel Studios!

David Haller is one of the most powerful mutants in the Marvel universe. And that’s expected when you’re the son of Professor X. Unfortunately, David’s also deeply troubled. Throughout his life he’s suffered from dissociative identity disorder. His mind is deeply fractured and inside of it he has over 200 plus alternate personalities all just as powerful as him. Not to mention that he’s also been plagued constantly by the Shadow King. The MCU hasn’t shied away from exploring heroes with mental illness before. But the wildly eccentric and avant-garde David Haller might be a square peg in a round hole for them. Interestingly though, David’s story was captured wonderfully in FX’s “Legion” tv show not set in the MCU.

When drug-addicted Robert Reynolds broke into a lab and drank a compound called the Golden Sentry Serum, it gave him some incredible powers. Eventually he became the Sentry, a superhero that’s pretty much Marvel’s answer to Superman. So it might sound strange to say that Marvel’s version of Superman is too dark for the movies. But that’s because the Sentry’s not quite as he seems. Robert Reynolds suffers from severe schizophrenia and possesses a personality known as the Void. If Sentry is the light, the Void is the dark. This pure killer only knows destruction. The Sentry might pop up in the MCU one day, but you can’t do Sentry without the Void. The MCU better know what they’re getting into with this hero!

Calling the Punisher a superhero is always going to feel like a stretch, but Marvel still loves to lump Frank Castle into that category. Fueled by the murder of his family, the Punisher is a brutal vigilante who kills as many villains as he can in his war on crime. Sure, Punisher’s had his own TV show. But Marvel’s Netflix shows are confusing to say the least about their connection to the MCU. Punisher will however be part of the firmly-MCU canon “Daredevil: Born Again” series. But there’s some concern from fans that it'll have a pretty sanitized version of the character. Can Punisher be done justice in the MCU’s Disney Plus shows or their feature length movies? Only time will tell!