6 Times Comics Made Great Villains Terrible

2. Mysterio Gets Talked To Death - Guardian Devil

Daredevil: Guardian Devil deserves plenty of praise for being one of the few DD comics to discuss Matt Murdock's faith, but it wasn't without its frustrating features. The storyline, penned by Kevin Smith and illustrated by Joe Quesada, saw the death of Karen Page while Matt himself faced a whole new kind of dilemma - one involving the ostensible rise of the Antichrist.

In a cruel twist of fate, it transpires that none other than Mysterio had orchestrated the entire event. Page was still murdered by Bullseye, but Quentin Beck had gone out of his way to target Daredevil in a Kingpin-esque fashion because, at the time, Peter Parker wasn't masquerading as Spider-Man. Beck, slowly succumbing to a brain tumour, then targeted Daredevil as a direct consequence, deciding that, if he couldn't destroy the web-slinger with his dying breath, he could at least torment his closest ally.

The grand finale was supposed to end with Matt murdering Mysterio, but he instead opts to humiliate the villain. Decrying the entire scheme as a low-budget movie and an ersatz version of Fisk's attempts to undermine Murdock years earlier, the Man Without Fear effectively talks Mysterio into killing himself, as the Spidey villain ultimately mimics Kraven's suicide out of pure embarrassment.

Beck would return sometime later, but he'd never live the humiliation of this moment down, regardless of how strong it made Daredevil seem.