The Juggernaut has recently undergone something of a ‘character overhaul’ in X-Men canon, as he’s now a legitimate superhero. While his gradual redemption has been a key element to his arc for quite some time (with the occasional backslide returning him to the villainous status quo), it seems his redemption is now complete, and the one-time X-Men supervillain is a bona fide hero.
Indeed, the Juggernaut is now an official X-Men member, having been voted into the team during the most recent Hellfire Gala, and that’s a title he still holds as a freedom-fighter against Orchis alongside what remains of the mutant population. As it stands, there isn’t a villainous bone in the Juggernaut’s body – but that wasn’t always the case. In fact, the Juggernaut used to be one of the most dangerous villains on the planet, both because of his unstoppable strength, and because of his apathetic, self-centered nature. Here are 10 of the Juggernaut’s worst crimes in X-Men canon (to remember the next time he does something heroic).
10 The Juggernaut Nearly Killed The X-Men (When They Were Still Kids)
X-Men #12-13 by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby
Upon his first appearance, the Juggernaut did one of the most despicable things a person could do: assaulted minors. Back in the early days of X-Men continuity, the original members of the mutant militant group were no older than sixteen years old, but that didn’t stop Cain Marko from breaking into their school and assaulting each one of them to get at his stepbrother, Charles Xavier.
The Juggernaut’s introduction is one of his most iconic moments in Marvel Comics canon, but if one stops to consider what he was actually doing in those issues, it’s clearly pretty messed up.
9 Juggernaut Framed Spider-Woman For A Crime He Committed
Spider-Woman #38 by Chris Claremont and Steve Leialoha
This comic opens with the full first page showing Spider-Woman being arrested for a crime the Juggernaut and his long-time partner, Black Tom Cassidy, committed. While the issue gets resolved by the end – and is admittedly one of the more tame things the Juggernaut has done – it proves that Marko is a much more dangerous criminal than many fans give him credit for.
During his villainous days, Juggernaut is regarded more or less as a dumb brute, who can be easily outsmarted and ultimately bested. However, by framing Spider-Woman, Juggernaut proves that he’s capable of much more conniving feats, which have very real and potentially detrimental impacts on even the most beloved superheroes.
8 The Juggernaut Blew Up One Of The Twin Towers
Spider-Man #16 by Todd McFarlane
Working once again with Black Tom, the Juggernaut takes the World Trade Center buildings themselves hostage, as well as everyone inside them. While Spider-Man and the X-Force worked to stop him, the Juggernaut demolished one of the Twin Towers with explosives, laughing as the destruction fell upon the city.
This issue was written years before the real world terrorist attack on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001.
7 Juggernaut Killed Everyone On The Raft With The Hammer Of Kuurth
Fear Itself #2 by Matt Fraction and Stuart Immonen
When the Juggernaut was imprisoned in the supermax prison built specifically for supervillains called the Raft, the Hammer of Kuurth crashed into the facility. Hearing its otherworldly call, the Juggernaut picked it up and was imbued with its god-tier power. Marko then proceeded to kill every single person on the Raft, both his fellow prisoners and the guards who were just working there.
While it’s not exactly the Juggernaut’s fault that he fell under the Hammer of Kuurth’s influence – since even superheroes like the Thing couldn’t resist its call – his very presence on the Raft was enough to doom everyone else, making him responsible for their deaths, regardless of any Asgardian influence.
6 Trion Juggernaut Threatened To Collapse All Reality
X-Men #88 by Alan Davis and Joe Casey
Another instance of the Juggernaut being a dangerous conduit of otherworldly forces, Juggernaut nearly collapsed all reality when he was possessed by an entity known only as Trion. As the Trion Juggernaut, Marko was able to punch holes through the very fabric of space and time, allowing him to charge through dimensions as easily as he could through the walls of a building.
Again, this wasn’t necessarily his fault, but this raw power would never have been a threat if not for the Juggernaut, which is another example of his mere existence being enough to put the entire world at risk.
5 The Juggernaut’s Very Existence Threatens The World
Juggernaut: The Eighth Day by Joe Casey and Terry Shoemaker
In what seems to have become a bit of a habit for the Juggernaut, Marvel Comics’ Eighth Day crossover event further proves that his existence is inherently dangerous, no matter how good his intentions might be. Eighth Day reveals that Juggernaut is what’s known as an Exemplar who represents Cyttorak’s presence on Earth. He is one of eight Exemplars, each representing their own demonic deities. Together, they are destined to raze the world and split it among themselves.
While the Juggernaut ultimately helps the heroes stop the impending apocalypse, it’s confirmed that as long as the Juggernaut lives, so, too, do the other Exemplars, meaning the world is never truly safe (regardless of Juggernaut’s current allegiances).
4 Juggernaut Had His Own ‘World War Hulk’ BEFORE The Hulk
Thor #412 by Tom DeFalco and Ron Frenz
As previously mentioned in the past few entries, the Juggernaut is a threat the world cannot risk housing, and Thor seeks to eliminate that threat once and for all. Not by killing the Juggernaut, but by exiling him from Planet Earth, effectively giving the Juggernaut his very own World War Hulk. In this issue, Thor transports the Juggernaut to a far-off asteroid where he was meant to spend the rest of his life in solitude. Eventually, the Juggernaut returned to cause havoc and chaos in a fit of planet-smashing vengeance, at which point he had to be handled once more.
This is an example not of a specific instance where the Juggernaut committed a horrible crime, but rather the heroes’ response to the wider threat he poses.
3 The Juggernaut Conquered An Entire Alien World
Thor #429 by Tom DeFalco and Ron Frenz
During that same conflict with Thor, the Juggernaut proved why he had to be sent off-world by making the most of his cosmic exile. After he was put on that asteroid, the Juggernaut was picked up by a kind race of extraterrestrials, who brought him back to their world. The Juggernaut responded to their kindness by conquering their entire planet.
This issue showed that the Juggernaut is an interplanetary threat as well as an earthbound one, while also putting his ultimate cruelty on full display. Indeed, taking over a whole planet after its people saved him from spending eternity floating through space is pretty heartless.
2 Juggernaut Teamed Up With Nightmare, Nearly Destroying All Existence
Doctor Strange #182 by Roy Thomas and Gene Colan
Being cast from the Earth by Thor wasn’t the only time Juggernaut suffered such a fate, as he was also thrown into the Crimson Dimension where he was meant to remain for all time. However, when Doctor Strange was battling Nightmare across interdimensional space, the Juggernaut saw the perfect opportunity to return to Earth. At first, the Juggernaut used his god-tier magic (which he learned while being banished on this otherworldly plane) to help Doctor Strange fight Nightmare. But, the second he thought it’d benefit him, the Juggernaut turned on the Avenger and worked with Nightmare to kill him.
This crime was especially heinous, as Juggernaut knew that if Nightmare won, practically all existence would be doomed. But, Marko didn’t care, he just had a short-sighted vision of helping himself, no matter how detrimental the cost.
1 Juggernaut Murdered An Entire Village To Prove His Devotion To Cyttorak
New Excalibur #15 by Frank Tieri and Jim Calafiore
The worst crime Cain Marko ever committed, the one that alone makes the Juggernaut’s recent redemption a joke without the need for any of the other nine that were previously mentioned, is when Juggernaut murdered an entire village to prove his devotion to Cyttorak. When the Juggernaut first claimed the Crimson Gem, he had to pass a test of strength and loyalty to the demon god that gave him this power, and a part of that test was to kill a village filled with men, women, and children in Cyttorak’s name – and the Juggernaut did it for no other reason than to keep his new god-tier power.
This particular atrocity is one that has haunted the Juggernaut his entire life, and is arguably the main reason he’s been so hellbent on redeeming himself as a member of the X-Men. But, nothing can undo an act of savagery this severe, making this the worst one of the 10 crimes to remember the next time the Juggernaut does something heroic.
