Throughout its 61 years of history, the X-Men franchise has never had a more iconic villain than Magnetothe Master of Magnetism. Visually distinct, immensely powerful, and possessing Shakespearean intensity, Magneto battled the X-Men and next to them. However, over the course of sixty years, he has also enjoyed many different costumes and makeovers.
Here are the 13 Craziest Makeovers Magneto Has Received In Marvel Comics. We searched far and wide for the biggest changes to Magneto’s design, showing the many different ways the ultimate mutant warrior greeted a world that hates and fears him.
13
Anti-Iron Man Armor
Debuted in AvX: Vs #1, by Jason Aaron and Adam Kubert
During the AvX event, the Avengers and X-Men went to war over the future of the newly discovered mutant Hope Summers. One of the most impressive battles of the event was between Iron Man and Magneto – a confrontation that some fans thought would be over in seconds. Of course, Tony Stark plays to win, wearing a suit made entirely of non-magnetic materials. However, if he thought that would give him the fight, he was wrong.
Tony attempted to win the fight with a fleet of satellites that channeled Jupiter’s magnetic field, allowing him to replicate Magneto’s powers. In response, Magneto ripped the satellites out of the sky, turning them into armor. The armor greatly enhanced Magneto’s magnetic powers, allowing him to reach and steal the power of entire planets. Unfortunately for Magneto, he ultimately concluded that the X-Men were on the wrong side of the fight and allowed Iron Man to take him down. Despite this, the anti-Iron Man is probably the strongest Magneto to ever exist, if only for a few seconds.
12
Magneto and the Magnetic Men
Debuting in Magneto and the Magnetic Men #1, by Gerard Jones and Jeff Matsuda
Marvel and DC’s short-lived initiative, Amalgam Comics, merged their lore, creating a new reality with merged versions of their iconic characters. Magneto found himself combined with DC’s William Magnus – a scientist who created the artificial beings known as Metal Men. Amalgam’s Magneto did much the same, creating his own team of robots to fight for the metamutants’ cause, trying to replace his lost family. This red, blue, and yellow costume gave Magneto a very ’90s makeover.
11
Steampunk Magneto
Debuted in X-Treme X-Men #2 by Greg Pak and Stephen Segovia
In an alternate reality where the deadliest mutants have become gods in golden armor, Magnus is a steampunk inventor who fights for the rebellion alongside his best friend. This version of Magneto still has his mutant powers, but he also has a modified flying car, complete with machine guns to keep his enemies at bay. Wearing a sharp suit with a battle helmet, this Magnus was eventually betrayed by Xavier, but managed to keep hope alive through his hidden base in Utopia.
10
Joseph
As seen in Scarlet Witch #5 by Steve Orlando and Russell Dauterman
Once again, this character isn’t actually Magneto, but it still reimagines his iconic design via his younger clone, Joseph. In 2023, Marvel has seemingly resurrected Magneto from his recent death with an incredibly stylish new look – a dark suit with an open-collar black shit, a black helmet, and a badge that turns Magneto’s original helmet paint into an identifying symbol. .
However, eagle-eyed fans noticed that this Magneto had a scar on his throat, guessing correctly it was actually José – Magneto’s 90s clone has now grown up to look like his ‘father’. Joseph enjoyed a few adventures alongside Scarlet Witch, but his real achievement was giving Magneto an incredibly stylish formal wear redesign.
9
Magneto and the Magnus Gang
First seen in Exiles #6 by Saladin Ahmed and Rod Reis
The multiverse contains a wide variety of worlds, including a reality based on the Old West. In this world, ‘Eric Magnus’ is the villain who killed King T’Chaka, resulting in a cowboy-themed Black Panther chasing him. The Exiles teamed up with Black Panther to take on Magneto and the Magnus Gang – a Wild West version of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants.
8
Hellfire Gala Costume
Designed by Russell Dauterman
In 2021, the X-Men held their first Hellfire Gala – a celebration of mutant power, culture and fashion. Each major X-Men hero was given a unique costume created by mutant designer Jumbo Carnation, with Xavier and Magneto debuting matching white and gold outfits, recognizing them as the founders of the mutant nation of Krakoa.
7
Battle Armor
See it in X-Men Blue #25 by Cullen Bunn and Jorge Molina
While mentoring the original and time-displaced X-Men, Magneto came face to face with the corrupted Havok and his team of mutant supremacists. Against Iron Man, Magneto quickly used his powers to create armor, fighting off big hitters including Emma Frost, Bastion, and Miss Sinister. The armor survived a full-force blast from Havok’s powers – something that has taken down the Hulk himself in the past.
6
Age of X
Debuting in Age of X: Alpha #1 by Mike Carey, Mirco Pierfederici, Gabriel Hernandez Walta, Carlo Barberi, Paco Diaz and Paul Davidson
What if Magneto lost everything he wanted? That was the question asked by the alternative reality of Age of X – a world where humanity has definitively declared mutants its enemies, hunting them by the tens of thousands. In this timeline, Magneto founded Fortress X – a last safe haven for mutants, formed by ripping human skyscrapers out of the ground and turning them into an impenetrable castle.
Ultimately, it turns out that this timeline was the result of the Legion’s manipulation of reality, but having been created, it now lives on, with its mutants fighting for survival. Magneto Age of X redesign turns him into a white knightwith shining armor and a flowing cape.
5
Pestilence Knight
Debuting in Powers of X #1, by Jonathan Hickman and RB Silva
While this character isn’t actually Magneto, he’s definitely a design version of the Master of Magnetism, with green armor and pronounced facial hair. North comes from a potential (now averted) timeline where mutantkind is almost present. He is the result of Mister Sinister’s genetic experiments, combining immense telepathic power with the DNA of Magneto’s daughter Lorna Danealso known as Polaris. In addition to this power, North was enhanced by Apocalypse as his latest Pestilence Knight. Unfortunately, the hero did not survive his final mission, but he contributed to the plan that prevented his dark timeline from emerging.
4
M’s House
As seen in House of M #1 by Brian Michael Bendis and Olivier Coipel
What if Magneto got everything he wanted? That’s the question answered by the iconic M’s House event, in which Scarlet Witch changed reality, creating a society where Magneto defeated humanity and elevated mutants to a higher place in humanity. Scarlet Witch combined the dreams of the X-Men and the Avengers to forge this new world, accidentally turning the world into a nightmare where humans were oppressed by their super-powered leaders.
Magneto was at the head of this society, with his medals and robes denoting his position as mutant royalty. This is a Magneto who has evolved beyond the ‘supervillain’ labelbut with enough metal ornamentation to instantly transform into a weapon should he be threatened.
3
Knight of Peace
Debuting in Uncanny X-Men #3 by Matthew Rosenberg, Kelly Thompson, Ed Brisson and Yıldıray Çınar
When Nate Grey’s X-Man created a pocket reality where mutants could live in harmony, he brainwashed several notable mutants to reinforce his vision. Magneto was drafted into the Knights of Salvation alongside Omega Red (the Knight of Wellbeing), the Blob (the Knight of Bounty) and Angel (the Knight of Life), with the Master of Magnetism taking on a druidic appearance, with purple robes and a scepter topped with crystal.
2
X Sentinels
Sean Chen and Eric Cannon’s contribution to X-Men: Ancient Visions #1
At the turn of the millennium, several Marvel creators were asked to submit single-page proposals for where the franchise could go in the next thousand years. One of the most visually appealing answers was “the X-Sentinels.” In this potential future, the X-Men’s cumulative injuries lead them to become cyborgs, giving them the immortality needed to safeguard the mutant race forever. Unfortunately, their minds were unable to cope with life with ever more cybernetic implants, which ultimately led to a senseless attack on all of humanity.
1
Cyborg-Zombie Magneto
As seen in Age of Ultron vs. Marvel Zombies, by James Robinson and Steve Pugh
2015 Marvel Secret Wars event allowed some of their wildest timelines and realities to meet, with Age of Ultron vs. Marvel zombies seeing the superhuman undead take on the Mad Android. However, after discovering a human settlement that neither of them can defeat alone, Magneto and Ultron forge an alliance, with the robot upgrading the zombies with advanced technology and metallic limbs. The result is a dead Magneto who is a robot from the waist down. – definitely the most extreme way Marvel has messed with his original costume.