The Infraggable Tony-Man vs Marvel™'s Magneto

Master of Magnetism, and of Wizards

I don't know what it is.  My favorite Comic superhero is none other than the web-slinger, Spider-Man himself.  (After all, if nothing else, Spider-Man is the reason why Tony-Man has a hypen in it.)  Spider-Man has a flip way of speaking.  He always doubts himself, he has many human vulnerabilities that we as a reader can sympathize with.  He wears a mask, to protect those that he loves, but also so he can deflect the fear that he has every time that the web head's life is threatened.  He knows that with great power comes yadda yadda yadda.  There is a great sadness that harbors in his heart, but it drives him to do good.  In a sense, Spider-Man could very well be more American than Captain America himself, who by Marvel's definition IS America.

But then, I get to thinking, that if Spider-Man embodies all the qualities of my favorite superhero... then why isn't Venom my favorite super villain, since Venom is by all account what Spider-Man could be if he ever gave into and became evil?  When I was younger, I really hadn't thought of Venom in that way, but now that I am thinking about it, I find myself looking to other super villains, and truly.  I think now my favorite comic book villain has to be Magneto.  Yes, he has something of a god complex.  Yes, he has done many things that can be considered crimes of humanity.  Yes, he's an extremist who wants to usher Homo Superior (mutants) into an age free from humanity, and to take what he perceives as their rightful place as the next evolutionary step... but there's something to be said about Magneto that makes him stand out.

The first thing is his origin.  We don't really know much of Erik "Magnus" Lensherr's upbringing.  What we do know is that the man now known as Magnus spent his early teens imprisoned with his family at the Nazi death camp in Auschwitz, Poland. The only member of his family to survive the camp, Magnus here learned how brutally human beings could treat minorities whom they considered different. After World War II Magnus married a woman named Magda and they had a daughter, Anya. When a mob prevented Magnus from rescuing Anya from dying in a fire, he used his powers to destroy them all in revenge.  With this in mind, it wasn't like Magneto had a good upbringing.  Sure Peter Parker's parents were killed when Peter was barely 4.  But, it can be agreed that Magneto's life had been pretty shitty for a majority of his years.  Not that this justifies his crimes against humanity, but there is an understanding of how a young man can be so shaped by the world.

The next important part about Magneto's character, is his relationship with Charles Xavier.  They were long time friends before they turned into enemies.  Eventually Magnus went to Israel, where he worked as a volunteer orderly at a psychiatric hospital and where he first met and became friends with Charles Xavier. Magnus and Xavier frequently debated the subject of mutants' coexistence with the rest of humanity. After the two men joined forces to rescue their friend Gabrielle Haller from Baron Strucker and his HYDRA agents, Magnus left for parts unknown. After being betrayed by the intelligence agents with whom he worked, Magnus began planning his campaign against the human race.  This dynamic shows that even with all that had happened between him and humanity, he did not automatically become evil and black-hearted.  Even though eventually he and Xavier became enemies, one such as Magneto can still have respect for his longtime friend.  This is very important and that in my opinion, it grounds Magneto and keeps him from being too cartoony, and too far from salvation.  That even as rivals, there is mutual respect from both Xavier and Magnus.

Powerful friends.... Powerful Enemies.

Lastly, Magneto's powers of magnetism is beyond measure.  Magneto is a mutant with the superhuman power to control magnetism. He can shape and manipulate magnetic fields that exist naturally or artificially. It is unclear, however, whether he must draw magnetic force from outside himself (if so, then he can do so over vast distances), or whether he can also generate magnetic force from within himself. Nor is it clear whether Magneto's power is psionic or purely physiological in nature.

Although Magneto's power is not on the level of the Silver Surfer in his prime, it is for all practical purposes limitless. Even before his rejuvenation, Magneto once lifted a cargo freighter weighing 30,000 tons 50 feet into the air from a distance of 300 feet away. Moreover, Magneto can use his magnetic powers in more than one way simultaneously. He can completely assemble a complicated machine within seconds through his powers. He can erect magnetic force fields with a high degree of impenetrability around himself for protection. Although Magneto often gestures when using his magnetic powers, he can utilize them fully even when standing totally still merely by concentrating.

Although Magneto's primary power is magnetism, he seems to have some ability to project or manipulate any form of energy that is related to magnetism. In the past he has fired a bolt of electricity, he has also created enough intense heat to destroy a metal door. Heat, or infrared radiation, is part of the electromagnetic spectrum, which also includes visible light, radio waves, ultraviolet light, gamma-rays, and x-rays. Magneto may be able to project any of these. He has also been shown creating an anti-gravity field, and presumably does so whenever he levitates a non-magnetic object. Hence, Magneto may be living proof of the long sought Unified Field Theory that all forms of energy are related. However, Magneto almost always uses only magnetism, so perhaps it is more difficult for him to manipulate other forms of energy.

In previous years Magneto has apparently exhibited powers of astral projection and telepathy, and has claimed to be able to control the minds of others. His abilities along these lines are minimal, however-enough, perhaps, to protect himself against mightier telepaths, but not of great use otherwise.

Magneto's ability to wield his superhuman powers effectively is dependent upon his physical condition. When severely injured, his body is unable to withstand the strain of manipulating groat amounts of magnetic forces.

Clearly, Magneto is amongst the most powerful mutants in the Marvel Universe, and with all of this, he has had plenty of experience in leadership, and he is charismatic, but he has also been vulnerable.  While he is powerful, he still exhibits traits that he is not invulnerable.  He is still guided by human-like emotions.  Anger, vengeance, envy, these things are apparent.  But underneath it all, he feels as a father, and wants to protect his fellow mutants, so that they do not have to go through their own personal Auschwitz.  He's not unlike any other father who wants to protect their children.  Perhaps he takes a few steps too extreme to achieve his intentions.  But seeing where his intents lie, perhaps one can't blame him.  Personally, I see him as a Black Crusader for Mutant Rights and Justice.  Then again, many villains in the Marvel Universe are products of their perception of the universe that is presented to them.

The moral of the story: Nazis ruin everything.