“ | And so, we have come full circle, Captain America. I will crush you and everything you hold dear under my heel. | „ |
~ Red Skull upon losing his "Dell Rusk" identity. |
“ | You poor, misguided, outdated soul. You have no idea what this country needs from its heroes, do you? Don't you realize? This was all for your benefit. | „ |
~ "Dell Rusk" to a sickly Captain America. |
Red Skull, whose real name is Johann Schmidt and alias is Dell Rusk, is a recurring antagonist in The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes, serving as the main antagonist in the episode "Meet Captain America", before returning in season 2 as the main antagonist of the Dell Rusk arc.
He is one of Captain America and his partner Bucky's greatest enemies alongside Baron Zemo, and one of the feared commanders of HYDRA during World War II. After the war ended, he changed his identity to Dell Rusk and became the Secretary of Defense to serve as a front to all his evil deeds.
He was voiced by Steve Blum, who also voiced Vilgax and Zs'Skayr in the Ben 10 franchise, Ares in the God of War video games, the Green Goblin in The Spectacular Spider-Man, the Loki Master in Ratchet & Clank: All 4 One, Starscream in Transformers Prime, Darkseid in Justice League: War, Sauron in the Middle-earth: Shadow video games and Jindiao in Kung Fu Panda: The Paws of Destiny.
What Makes Him Pure Evil?[]
- During World War II, he was HYDRA's leader who planned to enslave mystical creatures, including the brutal Frost Giant Ymir, from all the other Nine Realms to defeat the Allies and take over the world.
- He activates a self-destruct mechanism when Captain America and Bucky ambush him on his escape rocket, which results in Bucky dying as well as Cap being frozen in Arctic waters for several decades.
- When Cap managed to retcon Bucky's death with the Cosmic Cube in "Hail, HYDRA!", the Red Skull would then torture and brainwash him into the amnesiac assassin known as the Winter Soldier for years on end, putting him in cryosleep between missions.
- During one of these missions, Nick Fury lost many of his good men and his left eye.
- He brainwashes Dr. Leonard Samson and the Falcon into his minions against their will.
- He stages the Red Hulk's attack on the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier, killing countless agents before framing the Hulk for it, thus putting Bruce Banner behind bars until he finally returns in "The Deadliest Man Alive".
- He infects the streets of Manhattan with a toxic gas cloud that makes dozens of people look like himself as it slowly kills them, using an incendiary device with a built-in emission system planted in the Avengers Mansion in order to frame them. Although fortunately everyone was given the antidote just in time, the toxin still would've killed a lot of people if not for Iron Man.
- He beats up Captain America while he's infected and weak, before ordering the Winter Soldier to kill him just to give him an ironic death.
- When Bucky regains some of his memories and instead gives Cap the antidote, the Red Skull pulls out a pistol and tries to kill him for disobeying him.
- He created an army of giant robots known as the Sleepers, purposed with awakening and wreaking revenge on the world if his mission as Dell Rusk failed. He even uses them in a personal attempt to destroy the U.S. Capitol.
- In his final moments before getting defeated, he shows sadism while stating his plan to enslave Captain America just as he did Bucky so that they can "both share a long cold future together".
- While it's true that other villains including Loki, Baron Zemo, and Surtur did worse, Red Skull stands out due to his lack of resources and doing as much as he can with his limited resources, being a mere human. While Baron Zemo was also a mere human, he at least had access to the Norn Stones, something the Red Skull did not have.
External Links[]
- Red Skull on the Villains Wiki
- Red Skull on the Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes Wiki
- Red Skull on the Disney Wiki
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Pure Evils | ||
Baron Zemo | Loki | Red Skull | Supreme Intelligence | Surtur See Also |