Rob Liefeld Wants To Give Deadpool A True Nemesis Like Batman's Joker

While Deadpool has run afoul of countless Marvel heroes and villains since his 1991 debut in "The New Mutants" #98, he's yet to establish a genuine arch-nemesis, despite his best efforts. For decades now, there has never been a Joker to Deadpool's Batman, or a Magneto to his Professor X. Deadpool has never had the sort of legacy villain that eventually becomes synonymous with the character. But his creator, Rob Liefeld, is looking to rectify that and give Wade Wilson his own signature villain.

Speaking to Comic Book at San Diego Comic-Con, Liefeld, who is currently revisiting the character with a new miniseries, "Deadpool: Badder Blood," expressed a desire to give Marvel's Merc with a Mouth the sort of villain that will be intrinsically tied to him, much in the way Joker is linked to Batman. Not mincing words, Liefeld said. "He needs more bad guys, okay? Like how has it been 30 years? ... In 30 years I'm not sure we can identify a true Deadpool villain. Like who's his Sabertooth? Who's his Joker?"

Liefeld has a valid argument. He pointed to how iconic members of Spider-Man's rogues' gallery — like The Lizard, Kraven, Doctor Octopus, Green Goblin, and The Vulture — were introduced shortly after Peter Parker's 1962 debut. Wade, meanwhile, has yet to receive anything near a comparable stable of his own baddies after three decades. But Liefeld hopes that's about to change.

Rob Liefeld offered a couple of options as to who could take the title of Deadpool's chief antagonist, both of whom are just making their Marvel Comics debut in "Badder Blood."

In the miniseries, Liefeld wanted to put a modern twist on the classic villain Arcade, the proprietor of Murderworld, a funhouse so deadly that it poses a threat to even Marvel's greatest heroes. Aiming to update this concept, Liefeld proposed to Marvel a sister character to Arcade. Instead of Murderworld, this character, named Arcata, oversees Killville, a virtual reality upgrade to Murderworld's outdated deathtraps. In coming up with Arcata, Liefeld asked himself, "Can we apply some 21st-century logic here?" 

Another option in Liefeld's eyes will be Shatterstorm, a bounty hunter hailing from Mojoworld, the same world as X-Force's Shatterstar. Liefeld described Shatterstorm as "a female warrior who was in the same caste system (as Shatterstar), and is now here as a bounty hunter."

Whoever does end up being Deadpool's nemesis will certainly have their work cut out for them. Considering how self-aware Deadpool is, his finding a forever foe will likely be as exciting for Deadpool as it is for his readers. Hopefully, after all this time, the fan-favorite antihero will find the adversary he truly deserves.