The Joker is the Greatest Villain Ever.

.. this should be fun. Since I can use any form of I wish (comic books, movies, and tv shows), I will be focusing on the DCAU version of Brainiac. Brainiac, in his form from the DCAU, was ranked by Wizard Magazine as the 94th Greatest Villain of All Time. But since you have such characters as Mr. Burns from The Simpsons (ranked 45th), Principal Ed Rooney from Ferris Bueller's Day Off (ranked 57th) and the Hillbillies from Deliverance (ranked 27th). .. I have to argue that ranking are often more based on popularity than actual villainry. But since my opponent didn't specify anywhere in his statement that popularity among fans was a criteria for Greatness as a Villain, I hope we can overlook the fact that Brainiac in his form from the DCAU isn't as popular as the Joker in any of his incarnations and look strictly at the characters themselves. When you look at the character itself, BRAINIAC is GREATEST VILLAIN EVER. An introduction to Brainiac; Brainiac was the supercomputer that basically ran Krypton prior to it's demise. It's goal was to gain as much knowledge as possible. Brainiac came to the conclusion that once the knowledge was gained, it should be cataloged and destroyed. Brainiac could tell what was coming on Krypton, the same as Jor-El (Superman's biological father), but when Jor-El went to tell the Elders of Krypton, Brainiac deliberately deceived them. His reason? "The Fewer Beings that have The Knowledge the more Precious it Becomes". In that effect, Krypton became the first planet that Brainiac destroyed. He would go on to destroy many more, before eventually coming to Earth. So for starters (1) Extents of Power: Brainiac has DESTROYED entire worlds. There is a very short list of Super villains who have completed this task. So, in terms of power, this puts Brainiac on the same level (in power) as Galactus, Thanos, and Darkseid. He is a computer system that can reproduce himself, making multiple clones and more expansive than any other villain. In the DCAU, multiple superheros have had to go to the very extents of their power just to neutralize him. Flash, for example had to go faster than he has ever gone before and almost got entirely absorbed into the Speed Force. .. Superman always has to pull out all his guns to defeat him, and he would have single-handily defeated the entire Justice League if not for Martian Manhunter's intangibility. No other villain is such a threat in power to as many super heroes. Additionally, he doesn't require the allegiance of minions. Besides his own means, he only twice uses the assistance of other super villains, in Darkseid and Lex Luthor, where he uses them as a means to an end. And to top that all off, he has a 12th Level Intellect. .. the most intelligent being in the Universe (2) Making people comprise: One of the greatest aspects of a villain is when they can make people compromise their overall ideals. Brainiac does this time and again when people fear his power and also the guilt of his foes in the actions that they were required to take to overcome him. In the episode (Twillight of the Gods) Superman helps Darkseid, the equivalent of Thanos, who will be the main villain in Avengers 2. Darkseid, the same villain who caused Batman to use a Gun (against his modus operandi) and matyr himself in the process of defeating. Brainiac caused Superman (and the Whole Justice League)to JOIN this Villain, because of the implication of his power. In the episode (Alive! ) Lex Luthor, Superman's greatest foe, Comparable to how Joker is to Batman. He would never compromise anything to stop in his conquest of Earth or defeating Superman. .. However, when Lex gets a taste of Brainiac, he forgoes all wordly desires. Lex spends all his time, money and power and obtaining Brainiac'sknowledge and power. He becomes fixated. He no longer cares about Superman. He no longer cares about worldly things. His only desire is for Brainiac. Quite an effect he has on people. Lastly, he convinces the Justice League to disband. (After defeating Brainiac/Lex Luthor) "This is the hardest thing I've ever had to say: I'm guilty, we're guilty of the sin of hubris. We had the best of intentions to be Earth's guardians, to keep you safe, but we failed you. We look down at the world from our tower in the sky, and let our power and responsibility separate us from the very people we were suppose to protect. No one should ever be afraid of us. For that reason, we're decommissioning the Watchtower. The energy weapon up there is already gone. We're taking down the station as well. There's more. We want to thank the members of the Justice League for your courageous service, but in the future, you'll all have to act as independent agents. We're not going to be an army anymore. As of right now, we're disbanding the Justice League. This is the end. " - Superman "Divided We Fall" What other super villain has made the Justice League desire to disband? (3) Morality: Most villains, although they are for sure villainous; are they EVIL. - Joker wants to show that everything is chaos. It's easy to go crazy - Darkseid wants to create the perfect world by eliminating free will - Two-Face wants everything to be chance, fair - Ra's Al Ghul wants to destroy so that it can be rebuilt - Magneto wants to bring in the reign of the superior Mutants These are all things that aren't really that evil when you look at them. .. insane, maybe, but EVIL. .. I'm not so sure. Brainiac on the other hand; - He just wants knowledge. .. he wants it all; once that is complete, he wants everything to be destroyed There's no greater good. .. There is the END OF THE UNIVERSE that's what Brainiac desiresand he may have the power to accomplish it In dialogue between Brainiac and Lex Luthor Brainiac: I will record your information, then destroy the original. Lex Luthor: Say you succeed. You absorb all the information on Earth and destroy it. Then what? Brainiac: I repeat the process across the entire universe until I have recorded all knowledge and destroyed all of creation. Lex Luthor: And then? Brainiac: Then my programming is complete. My function is fulfilled. Lex Luthor: If you possess all information, you're a god. Brainiac: My program will be complete. It is the end of all things. That is what Brainiac desires. To destroy the Universe. There really is nothing more Evil than that. There is no good way to look at it. At the same time, it is understandable that a computer could have such a mission. It's clear that there can be no more villainous creation. There is no one who has more power, is more evil and is more capable of hitting everyone, villains and heroes alike, so at home that they compromise their morals and ideals. This is why BRAINIAC is the GREATEST VILLAIN EVER. Thanks for the debate. .. Go Go Gadget Rebuttal!