Are You a Superhero, an Anti-Hero or a Supervillain?

By: Zoe Samuel
Estimated Completion Time
7 min
Are You a Superhero, an Anti-Hero or a Supervillain?
Image: Marvel Entertainment / Kinberg Genre / The Donners' Company / TSG Entertainment

About This Quiz

Comic books have changed a lot over the last 40 years, and no title is immune to these changes. There was a time when comic book readers expected stories of pure good versus pure evil, but beginning in the 1980s, a time when America was taking stock of much of its past, this paradigm tilted toward complexity. The old ways of heroes and villains, black and white, became infused with gray. The cultural impact of the anti-hero, a type of character popularized in the films of the 1970s, took hold, staking its own claim in the comic book landscape, and changing the way both heroes and villains are written. Anti-heroes are characters who resist an act they view as evil, but in the end they must do this act in order to do good. The example of William Munny in the film "Unforgiven" is a perfect example of this archetype.

Following the introduction of comic book anti-heroes like The Punisher, publishers began to re-examine their stock of characters, seeking chances to, as pro wrestling does with "babyfaces" and "heels," turn heroes to villains, villains to heroes, and either into antiheroes. If motives determine actions, and actions define the title of a superhero, supervillain, or comic book anti-hero, then plot events can turn any character from one to another. Given the plot events of your life, which would you be? Would you use your powers for good or evil? And what pushes you to do this? Find out all that and more by taking this quiz!

1 what age powers
Adriana Varela Photography/Moment/Getty Images
At what age did you get your super-powers?
I was barely 30 years old at the time.
I was born with them.
I was 20; not yet old enough to drink!
I obtained my powers at the tender age of 50.

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2 sidekick
sarahwolfephotography/Moment/Getty Images
What's your sidekick like?
I work alone.
They're profoundly stupid. An idiot!
They're my best friend and I would trust them with my life.
An artificial intelligence that inhabits a blob of goo

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3 devils bargain with powers
The Power Of Forever Photography/Photodisc/Getty Images
What turned out to be the "devil's bargain" when it comes to having your powers?
When I use them, somehow I always do something I regret.
Nothing! I am marvelous!
My powers make my appearance unpalatable.
My powers cause me discomfort when I use them.

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4 how long do you remain a super being
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How long do you intend to remain in the super-being game?
I want out as soon as possible.
I will continue for my whole life!
I will pass off the mantle the second I find someone I can trust.
I will continue until I have completed my mission!

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5 what was life like before
Walrus Images/DigitalVision/Getty Images
What was your life like before you were super-powered?
I wasn't a good person. I did bad things.
I struggled in my calling, failing to achieve.
I wasn't in a position to really change the world at all.
I was just another denizen of the planet Flaktar in the parallel universe known as RC-492.

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6 grand goals
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Which of these grand goals matches up best with your life's work?
I just want to retire.
I will dominate my enemies and make them kneel before me!
I will do what I feel I must until the day I no longer need to.
I will do what I feel I must until the day I no longer can.

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7 do you want your powers
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Do you want your powers?
No, full stop.
Yes! They're wonderful! Why would I not want them?
I swing back and forth between wanting them and wanting rid of them.
Sometimes I don't want them, but then, when I use them, I know I want them forever.

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8 fund your activities
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How do you fund your activities as a super-being?
I just scrape by on my life's savings.
I have a gigantic trust fund that funds my activities.
Not very well, with my side hustle
I work for the government.

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9 whom did you look up to
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Who did you look up to before you obtained your powers?
My old commanding officer
My father. Daddy never thought I measured up though ...
A local firefighter I knew
A figure in my religion

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10 Dr Manhattan, Dr strange, dr strangelove
Warner Bros. Pictures, Marvel Studios, Hawk Films
Which of these characters would you view as an ally?
Doctor Manhattan
Doctor Love
Doctor Strange
Doctor Strangelove

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11 publicly take credit
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For which of these actions would you want to publicly take credit?
I'd like the public to think I don't exist.
Overthrowing a government and beginning my reign!
I'd take credit for saving people from a natural disaster.
I'd take credit for saving a bus full of people from a terrible collision, and then having one of the people on the bus turn out to be a prolific criminal.

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12 being worshiped
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Under what circumstances would you be OK with being worshiped as a deity?
If there was no other way to do the right thing, and it'd have to be short
Any circumstances, so long as I am the god of death!
None. No circumstances!
Only as the side effect of stopping a meteor from striking the Earth

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13 arch enemy
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Do you and your arch enemy know each other outside your relationships as super-beings?
No, but we have a connection.
No, we only met because of our powers.
Yes, they are intimately tied to my powers.
Well, we did date once, but then you know, things happen and next thing you know, you're fighting on top of a skyscraper.

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14 Where do you come from
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Where do you come from?
I was an Army brat.
A small nation living under the dictatorship of my father!
I came of age in a regular, western city.
A world comprised of the scent of fear, broken mirrors and ennui

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15 household situation
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What's your household situation?
I'm kinda homeless, and not in an Airbnb sort of way. It's not fun.
I live with my retinue of servants and ninjas in a huge palace.
I live with my one servant/mentor, far from civilization.
I live in the minds of the insane, on the fourth day of the Justinian calendar, in The Fourth Pentangle of Jupiter.

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16 mentor
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Who acted as your mentor while you were getting the hang of your powers?
My old buddy ... who has since passed away thanks to my terrible crimes.
I had the most skilled teachers money could buy, and learned my craft from them.
I looked for moral guidance from a respected elder, but had no mentorship in the use of my powers.
I learned my ways from the hidden messages I deciphered from watching Betty Boop at high speed, in reverse.

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17 where do you live
Qi Yang/Moment/Getty Images
Where do you live?
I live in a major American city.
I live on a superyacht which can go anywhere.
I live in a compound a few minutes outside a major city.
I live on a satellite base I won in combat with Grotan The Moon Monster.

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18 where do your powers originate
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From where do your powers originate?
I got my powers after being the subject of a secret government experiment.
I got my powers the old fashioned way: by being genetically engineered through centuries of selective breeding, then having cybernetic implants put in and being bombarded by radiation.
I got my powers by accident when I was around for a science demonstration.
I got my powers from contact with an alien parasite which speaks to me through my dreams.

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19 How time is committed
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How much of your time is committed to your super-identity and its activities?
Nearly all of it, despite my best efforts to reverse that trend.
Every waking moment of my time is dedicated toward it!
A couple of hours a day, on average
Time is an illusion. But seriously, probably about 45 minutes a day.

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20 pass off your super-powers as normal
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How easily can you pass off your super-powers as normal?
Too easily ...
I can't, despite my best efforts.
Why would I even bother with that?!
It took a little practice, but I can do it.

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21 motivation to action
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What motivation to action would actually put a smile on your face?
Saving the little guy from a bully would do it for me.
Revenge on my old enemy would make me smile.
Saving someone and thus restoring their faith in humanity would be nice.
Stopping a fire in a building containing the computer infected with the malware that downs the world's economy would be nice.

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22 secret identity
Richard Newstead/DigitalVision/Getty Images
Which of these is closest to describing your secret identity?
Drifter
Prince
First responder
I am a normal family man from France.

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23 unwanted feeling
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What unwanted feeling compels you to action?
Impotent rage
Noblesse oblige
Fear
Itchiness

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24 if you didn't have super powers
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What would you be doing with your life if you didn't have super powers?
I don't know ... living a normal life I suppose.
Preparing my offspring to be dominators of the world!
I'd be in grad school.
I would likely work for a major governmental body.

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25  hurt the ones you love
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Under what circumstances have you hurt the ones you love?
I did that a bit as a part of my old job ...
Love? Sorry, that word does not compute.
I could only do it by accident.
Almost any. I mean, sometimes you have to hurt the ones you love.

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26 costume
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What do you wear as a costume?
I wear body armor with the sleeves ripped off.
I wear a quasi-military uniform with a golden mask that looks like an animal head and a cape made of spiky chains.
I wear a full spandex superhero outfit, with a cape.
I wear a pinstriped suit.

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27 achilles heel
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What is your super-being "Achilles heel"?
My conscience is my Achilles heel.
I have a peculiar weakness when exposed to bright light.
Small animals really freak me out.
My actions always seem to have consequences contrary to my desire.

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28 how involved are the people in your life
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How much are the people from your regular life involved in your life as a super-being?
I keep them as far from the action as possible, but I fail at that a lot.
They are fully involved!
Some of them are very involved, but the rest know nothing of it!
Only one is involved, but they are an equal partner.

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29 event using powers
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What event first prompted you to use your powers?
I saw criminals planning to kill some innocent hostages and I had to take action.
I was angry at a servant, so I took out my rage on their skeleton.
I saw a baby in a burning building and had to act!
I saw a baby outside a burning building and had to act!

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30 arch enemy
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Which of these best describes your arch enemy?
They're just like me, except their morality is a little different.
He's a total Boy Scout who carries a shield.
He's a world-destroying monster from another planet.
The overpopulation of the universe is my arch enemy.

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You Got: