History WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity / ComicBooks

* Inverted ([[ZigZaggingTrope or not]]) in ''Comicbook/TheAuthority'', where the Doctor gives up his powers to a [[LegacyCharacter previous]] Doctor, who was relieved of his duties for being a [[OmnicidalManiac psychotic maniac]]. However, every Doctor gets new powers added to the ones of the previous Doctor, all the way back to the first one. The current Doctor has access to the ancestral knowledge and wisdom of every previous Doctor, granting him empathy with every living thing—which he dealt with by shooting heroin. As soon as the full extent of the Doctor powers kicked in, the villainous Doctor was [[VillainousBSOD overwhelmed]] by the empathy for every living thing in existence. [[spoiler:At which point the Authority burned him alive and kicked his head off.]]
* Creator/WarrenEllis' ''Comicbook/GlobalFrequency'' not only invokes this, but explains it in terms of the surgical alterations required to keep the superstrong bionic arm or whatever from physically tearing the body apart. "They gave him a mirror."

* ''ComicBook/{{Grifter}}'': In the original Creator/{{Wildstorm}} continuity, Grifter spent several years suffering from mental illness after being exposed to Gen Factor before Zealot helped him regain his sanity.

*** In the ([[CanonDisContinuity non-canon]]) "25 Years Later" storyline, Knux ends up becoming "Chaos Knuckles" (a form he took up in the normal canon without much ill effect), and ends up trying to change the world, as well. The result was the almost complete destruction of his friendship with Sonic and the loss of his right eye.

* ''ComicBook/MegaManArchieComics'': Happens Mega Man in issue #3, which leads to a brief HeroicBSOD.

* In ''ComicBook/{{Powers}}'', a naturally occurring variant occurs in "The Sellouts" storyline, in which a never-aging CaptainErsatz of Franchise/{{Superman}} gradually loses his connection with humanity and goes insane, [[AGodAmI declaring himself to be a God]]. It's discussed that this may partly be a result of his ever-increasing level of superpowers, which go ''way'' beyond anything seen before (to the extent that the government has lied about exactly how powerful he is in order to prevent hysteria about him), and partly because, despite the fact that he doesn't ''look'' very old, he's at least over a hundred years old and has gone senile.

* ''ComicBook/SonicTheComic'': Super Sonic, unlike the benign SuperMode seen in the source material, is Sonic's SuperpoweredEvilSide who can wipe the floor with nearly any threat to his wellbeing... but will just as readily attack his friends as well.

* In the original Creator/{{Wildstorm}} continuity, ComicBook/{{Grifter}} spent several years suffering from mental illness after being exposed to Gen Factor before Zealot helped him regain his sanity.
* In ''ComicBook/TheUmbrellaAcademy'', there is [[spoiler: Vanya]], who only becomes able to use [[spoiler: her great and extremely unstable powers]] after being tortured. Not exactly a recipe for a sane and stable person. [[spoiler: Not to mention the fact that she ends up deciding to destroy the world after unlocking her powers, and blows up the moon]].

* A rather mundane case of this appears in ''[[ComicBook/{{Irredeemable}} Incorruptible]]''. Max Damage becomes [[SuperStrength stronger]] and [[NighInvulnerability more invulnerable]] the longer he stays awake. If he stays awake for say, a week, his powers reach PhysicalGod levels. However, he is still vulnerable to the effects of sleep deprivation. The result is someone who is mentally exhausted and strong enough to topple buildings -- an unnerving combination. Dealing with the numbness his invulnerability brings with it for years has also taken its toll on Max's sanity. Given that the premise of the story is Max's attempt at a HeelFaceTurn to save the world from an [[BewareTheSuperman evil Superman]], this causes even more problems. He needs to be strong enough to fight the Plutonian yet not let his insanity push him back toward a life of evil.

* Inverted ([[ZigZaggingTrope or not]]) in ''Comicbook/TheAuthority'', where the Doctor gives up his powers to a [[LegacyCharacter previous]] Doctor, who was relieved of his duties for being a [[OmnicidalManiac psychotic maniac]]. As soon as the full extent of his powers kicked in, he was [[VillainousBSOD overwhelmed]] by the empathy for every living thing in existence. Super-empathy being part of the Doctor's role as the world's shaman, makes you wonder why this guy was psychotic [[FridgeLogic in the first place]].
** Every Doctor gets a new power, added to the ones the previous Doctor who had the job had all the way back to the first one. After he went psycho, the next guy got super empathy, which he used A LOT of heroin to deal with.

* A rather mundane case of this appears in ''[[ComicBook/{{Irredeemable}} Incorruptible]]''. Max Damage becomes [[SuperStrength stronger]] and [[NighInvulnerability more invulnerable]] the longer he stays awake. If he stays awake for say, a week, his powers reach PhysicalGod levels. However, he is still vulnerable to the effects of sleep deprivation. The result is someone who is mentally exhausted and strong enough to topple buildings -- an unnerving combination. Dealing with the numbness his invulnerability brings with it for years has also taken its toll on Max's sanity. Given that the premise of the story is Max's attempt at a HeelFaceTurn to save the world from an [[BewareTheSuperman evil Superman]] {{Expy}}, this causes even more problems. He needs to be strong enough to fight the Plutonian yet not let his insanity push him back toward a life of evil.

* ''ComicBook/MegaManArchieComics'': Mega Man has this in the third issue, which leads to a brief HeroicBlueScreenOfDeath. Later averted, however.

* ''ComicBook/MegaMan'': Mega Man has this in the third issue, which leads to a brief HeroicBlueScreenOfDeath. Later averted, however.

* ''ComicBook/MegaManArchieComics'': Mega Man has this in the third issue, which leads to a brief HeroicBlueScreenOfDeath. Later averted, however.

* In ''Comicbook/{{Powers}}'', a naturally occurring variant occurs in "The Sellouts" storyline, in which a never-aging CaptainErsatz of Franchise/{{Superman}} gradually loses his connection with humanity and goes insane, [[AGodAmI declaring himself to be a God]]. It's discussed that this may partly be a result of his ever-increasing level of superpowers, which go ''way'' beyond anything seen before (to the extent that the government has lied about exactly how powerful he is in order to prevent hysteria about him), and partly because, despite the fact that he doesn't ''look'' very old, he's at least over a hundred years old and has gone senile.

!!!Franchise/TheDCU
* ''Franchise/{{Batman}}'':
** An interesting case concerning pre-''ComicBook/{{Flashpoint}}'' ComicBook/{{Azrael}}. When Jean-Paul Valley was born, he was implanted with a brainwashing trance of sorts known as The System, which would grant him amazing strength and agility when he donned the gear of Azrael, though it made him BrainwashedAndCrazy, pushing him to want to kill the guilty. When he first abandoned that role, he functioned pretty well... until the Scarecrow doused him with Fear Gas when JP [[ComicBook/{{Knightfall}} took up the Mantle of the Bat in Bruce Wayne's place]]. The entirety of the subsequent ''Knightquest'' storyline has Jean-Paul constantly fighting The System until he lets Abattoir die. When he does, he finally submits to The System and becomes a fearful mixture of Batman and Azrael and forces Bruce to take back the Mantle.
** Happens to Batman when he gets Superman's power during a battle with the Silver Banshee in a ''ComicBook/SupermanBatman'' story. Batman uses his new powers to bring complete fear and order to Gotham's criminal underworld, and eventually sets his sights on the world, but he becomes increasingly aggressive. With the aid of the Justice League, Superman is able to bring himself and The Dark Knight back to normal. Admittedly this was a BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor ArtifactOfDoom.
* Interesting case with Comicbook/BlackAdam. His powers don't drive him crazy (he went crazy on his own, [[HeelFaceRevolvingDoor and sometimes comes back from that insanity]]...[[AntiHero partially]]), but he can share them, and anyone who would take them on immediately turns evil. ''Anyone'', including [[spoiler:the goddess of love]].
* ''Comicbook/DoomPatrol'': Mento wasn't the most stable/mentally healthy guy to begin with. Then he starts tinkering with a helmet that cranks his PsychicPowers UpToEleven and takes up superheroing. But his wife and her team die, and it REALLY sent him downhill [[FaceHeelTurn until he's doing stints as a supervillain]] and trying to kill his own adopted son! When that heroing team was led by a fellow {{retcon}}ned into a MadScientist and MagnificentBastard, it was damn near inevitable.
* ''ComicBook/{{Firestorm}}'': The curse of the werehyena causes anyone suffering it to gradually go insane. It is theorised that the madness suffered by the werehyenas is one's bestial side taking over, coupled with an exaggeration of negative emotions.
* ''Franchise/TheFlash'': Hunter Zolomon spent his life in a TraumaCongaLine, but he remained a good cop until Gorilla Grodd crippled him and the Flash, whom Hunter considered a friend, refused to use time travel to undo the damage. Hunter attempted to use the Flash's cosmic treadmill himself, but it blew up in his face. The resulting super powers had the side effect of scrambling his thought processes, until he decided that the best way to help his friend the Flash was to make him a better hero through tragedy as Zoom. Hunter still thinks he's helping the Flash, although he gets occasional flashes of MyGodWhatHaveIDone when Wally foils his plans.
* Retconned for Doctor Magnus, the leader of the ''Comicbook/MetalMen''. He needs a careful application of medicine in order to stay stable and good. He's kidnapped along with genuine mad scientists and they cancel his meds, intending for him to regress to his previous level of insane creativity, in which he created a horrific weapon of mass destruction, the Plutonium Man. Though he ''does'' recreate the Plutonium Man, he destabilizes ''very'' quickly, and with the help of several sentient mini-Metal Men he'd managed to cook up in his lab, invents a gun with ''living'' ammo and goes on a rampage (against evil men only), screaming about how he '''''really''''' needed his meds.
* The Psycho-Pirate, a villain with the emotion-changing Medusa Mask, actually had three of them, one for a single emotion, before deciding to combine all three to control all emotions. Unfortunately, continued use ended up driving him insane -- he's first seen in ''ComicBook/CrisisOnInfiniteEarths'' locked away in an insane asylum.
* ''Franchise/{{Superman}}'':
** [[InvertedTrope Inverted]] in ''ComicBook/AllStarSuperman'': [[spoiler:Lex Luthor temporarily gains Superman's powers, and while he predictably rampages, he finds himself stopping to examine the amazing perspective his newfound powers and super-senses give him. He eventually concludes that having the level of power and insight that Superman does would make people care for their fellow human beings, and mellows out considerably after losing the powers]].
** ''ComicBook/SupermanUpUpAndAway'': One Kryptonite Man is a scientist who thinks Kryptonite can be used as a safe energy source. When he himself becomes that energy source, he decides to show the world how effective it can be by... a murderous rampage. Later, another scientist goes cuckoo bananas when he gains control over an oversized amoeba. Or so it seems. Superman subdues the guy, who says he didn't want to do it, but Intergang, a powerful criminal organization, made him.
** In ''ComicBook/AMindSwitchInTime'', Euphor becomes more powerful and more insane as he mass-absorbs negative emotions until he has become a crazy overlord who can give Superman a hard time.
** Livewire, experiencing some AdaptationalHeroism after [[CanonImmigrant immigrating to the comics]], has her status as a PsychoElectro justified by the observation that, as an {{Energy Being|s}}, taking on more energy affects her equivalent of brain chemistry. In her case more power is literally more insanity. Putting her in Superman's suit from his [[DorkAge blue period]] to regulate her form snaps her to sanity immediately and she becomes a hero at the end of ''Superman: Grounded''.
* Matthew Cable from ''ComicBook/SwampThing''. His PsychicPowers and his spiraling alcoholic insanity both stem from the same illicit electroshock treatments.
* Invoked but eventually subverted in the 1990s "Postboot" of ''ComicBook/LegionOfSuperHeroes.'' Livewire is often spoken of not using his lightning powers to their utmost. He also keeps warning sister Sparks of misusing their abilties. It turns out Livewire is convinced that the lightning drove their older brother Mekt insane and into the criminal Lightning Lord. Even when Mekt is killing cops and attacking, Livewire begs him to stop so they can get him help. Sparks is amazed as she says that Garth [[BrokenPedestal looked up to Mekt too much]] as he was ''always'' this corrupt and twisted figure. After Mekt blows of his arm, Garth finally accepts the lightning did nothing but make an already psychopath Mekt worse to defeat him. This allows Garth to overcome his own problems and be able to use the full potential of his power.
* ''Franchise/WonderWoman'':
** This is an issue for gods, and the Greek pantheon actually split themselves in two in antiquity to create the Roman pantheon because the influx of worshipers was too much for them. In modern times they don't worry about it as much since they have far fewer worshipers and they've actually rejoined with their Roman counterparts. Some of the gods have trouble with it anyway, like Ares, Aphrodite and Dionysus because their power doesn't just come from worshipers and their attributes influence their mindset and actions.
** ''ComicBook/WonderWoman1942'': Hypnota goes off the deep end at the same time as they gain their powers, though if this was a side effect of their new mild telepathy or due to the damage left behind by the bullet through their head which activated their powers is not clarified.
** ''ComicBook/WonderWoman1987'': Once the White Magician's BlackMagic use starts affecting him physically his mind goes right out the window and he becomes a twisted demonic thing before his death.
** ''ComicBook/WonderWomanOdyssey'': With every unjust death, Nemesis' power grew until she could reign alone above all other Greek dieties, whom all fled to the mortal plan in terror and went into hiding to escape her wrath. It also drove her completely mad.
* In the New 52 arc ''Comicbook/DarkseidWar'', members of the Justice League end up becoming the New Gods after the death of Darkseid and others caused a power vacuum. Batman becomes the New God of Knowledge, taking Metron's chair for his own, and intends to his all-powerful knowledge to bring order to Gotham, even if preventatively. Franchise/{{Superman}} becomes the New God Of Strength when Luthor throws him into a Fire Pit in a deeper attempt to recharge Superman's solar cells. It [[GoneHorriblyRight Goes Horribly Right]] since while it does make him much more powerful, Superman's temper is temporarily out of control (because, well, it is fire from ''Apokolips''). Franchise/TheFlash becomes the new [[TheGrimReaper Black Racer]] after he kills the old one (namely, he was trying to convince Barry to take his place and required him to offer one life. When Barry initially refuses, the Black Racer threatens to give it to Reverse Flash or Grodd, thus Barry uses ExactWords and kills the Black Racer... before offering ''himself'' as said life.) Subverted with Hal Jordan. He becomes the New God Of Light at behest of the Mother Lantern (the Mother Box fusing with the Green Lantern core, but lacking a vessel for will to use). Hal brings back everyone killed during Apokalips' invasion of Oa, but he gives up godhood when he realizes it would mean giving up will.
* Dr Manhattan in ''Comicbook/{{Watchmen}}'' is a subtler and relatively benign variation of the trope; it's implied that he was more at home dealing with elementary particles than other people even before the FreakLabAccident turned him into an [[WeAreAsMayflies immortal]] PhysicalGod who can see the future [[YouCantFightFate but not change any of it, even]] ''[[YouCantFightFate his own actions]]''. However, instead of suffering a spectacular HeroicBSOD and subsequent FaceHeelTurn, he's one of the least emotionally damaged people in the entire cast, whilst still being [[BlueAndOrangeMorality almost entirely disconnected from normal human thought patterns]].

!!!Franchise/MarvelUniverse
* The evil and non-evil versions of insanity pop up in a ''lot'' of the Marvel Universe's more powerful human characters, apparently as a way of HoldingBackThePhlebotinum. ComicBook/ScarletWitch, Phoenix, Comicbook/TheSentry, or anyone else like that being able to use their maximum power levels while fully themselves would remove all drama. Scarlet Witch is currently the most powerful and resultantly has it the worst. We haven't seen her mind in stable condition for quite some time now that her power's gone from "[[WindsOfDestinyChange I point and my opponent slips on a banana peel]]" to "[[RealityWarper whatever I decide simply]] ''[[RealityWarper is.]]''" She'll ''never'' get to have that kind of power and the ability to think "Wouldn't it be nice if the Skrulls (okay, except [[Comicbook/{{Runaways}} Xavin]], [[ComicBook/FantasticFour Lyja]], and [[ComicBook/XMen Cadre K]], and the Super Skrull if [[HeelFaceTurn he keeps playing nice]]) turned into rice pudding?" at the same time.
* When the Canadian government was looking for people to join Comicbook/AlphaFlight, they initially had trouble finding recruits. The people in charge of the program decided to try creating their own superbeings, and they got the bright idea to experiment on a SerialKiller who got a pardon in exchange for agreeing to participate. The result was a crazed monster with deadly psychic abilities calling itself Bedlam. ComicBook/{{Wolverine}} had initially signed on to join Alpha Flight, but this debacle was what caused him to leave the group in disgust. Fortunately, Guardian left an emergency protocol that would automatically call Wolverine should Bedlam be freed, which proved necessary when a government official unfamiliar with the backstory ended up setting him free.
** Madison Jeffries, a {{Technopath}}, and his brother Lionel, a doctor with HealingHands, fought in a war together, where Madison could forget about his mutant powers, while Lionel used his to heal wounded soldiers. Then one day, some soldiers were brought back [[AnArmAndALeg in pieces]]. Lionel attempted to put them back together, and when he couldn't bring them BackFromTheDead, he went insane and started using his powers to [[BodyHorror mutilate everybody within arm's reach]], becoming Scramble the Mixed-Up Man. Madison had to use his powers to create a containment suit for his brother, and had him locked away, completely isolated from human contact. Scramble was eventually able to [[HealThyself seemingly fix himself by using his powers on his own brain]], but it was a temporary fix at best, and his lack of ethics helped to push him around the bend again, forcing Madison (now using the Box robot) to put him down for good.
* All attempts to replicate the SuperSerum that gave ComicBook/CaptainAmerica his powers have [[PsychoSerum either made people go crazy]] or been used on someone who was already crazy. In fact, in the Comicbook/{{Ultimate|Marvel}} universe, this seems to be the origin for all of [[Comicbook/UltimateSpiderMan Ultimate Spider-Man's]] RoguesGallery. One of the rare ''good'' endings for someone getting the Super-Soldier serum is Isaiah Bradley, grandfather of Patriot from the ''ComicBook/YoungAvengers''. While he was stable, he would end up gradually suffer brain damage over time despite not aging much physically. Yes, that's what passes for a good ending when trying to reproduce the Super-Soldier serum (though granted, Isaiah's condition was exacerbated by the horrific conditions he was kept in after his mission.) One wonders why they keep trying.
* ComicBook/{{Deadpool}} was probably messed up before developing terminal cancer, but the Weapon X program (which initially ''failed'' to give him a HealingFactor) gives him a hard shove in that direction. Then Dr. Killebrew experiments on and tortures him to the point of having visions of (and ''falling in love with'') [[TheGrimReaper Death]]. What finally demolishes his sanity is when Killebrew orders him killed, his healing factor finally kicks in, saving his life, making his disfigurement permanent, and causing Death to reject him. Depending on the writer, he's a mix of AxCrazy, DeadpanSnarker, gleeful GenreSavvy, and MediumAwareness. Another issue is that the HealingFactor is connected to his cancer -- he's basically an immortal living cancer. The constant state of flux and strain this places on him (including his brain) is why he's so unstable.
* ''Comicbook/IncredibleHulk''. The gamma bomb gave Bruce Banner huge power and exacerbated his multiple personality syndrome. Plus, the madder he gets, the stronger he becomes.
** Interestingly, for both ''The Mask'' and Marvel's gamma ray mutants, what happens to the subject's mind depends on what part of their personality they had dissociated themselves from. Most people who get the Mask unlock their evil side, but the fellow in TheMovie didn't ''have'' an evil side, only a chaotic side, so he essentially became a WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes character. Marvel goes into more detail -- Banner suppressed the rage that came from being abused as a child, Comicbook/SheHulk suppressed [[MsFanservice her sexuality]], Doc Samson suppressed his desire to be a hero, and the Abomination suppressed his self-hatred.
* Handled interestingly with [[Comicbook/TheSentry Sentry]]. His [[SuperpowerLottery powers]] are like some ridiculous combination of {{Franchise/Superman}} and [[ComicBook/FantasticFour Franklin Richards]], making him technically unstoppable and all-powerful. He's also a paranoid schizophrenic who managed to convince himself that there was an evil galactic power called The Void that would destroy the earth if he stayed a superhero... and then ''actually created it out of thin air'', making a problem for ComicBook/TheAvengers to handle while ComicBook/EmmaFrost gave him some emergency psychotherapy. During this time, he also managed to {{Retcon}} himself out of his own universe, so that his [[UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfComicBooks Golden Age]] exploits all became some comic writer's fantasy. In something of a subversion, Sentry's not a villain: in current canon, he works to use his powers for a great deal of good. Unfortunately, his psychosis still isn't fully under control, and it's a disability that is sometimes just impossible to work around.
** Later developments suggest that the Sentry is an inversion of this trope. Robert Reynolds was ''already'' a mentally unstable drug addict ''before'' taking the serum that gave him his powers, so it's more like someone with great insanity given great power. Furthermore, [[spoiler:Reynolds didn't become the Sentry and create the Void, it was the other way around..]].
*** [[spoiler:An alternate interpretation is that Reynolds splits into the Sentry and the Void, neither of which are more physically or psychologically real than the other.]]
*** In ''ComicBook/UncannyAvengers'', he returned as the Horseman of Death (the Void apparently got bored and wandered off), even crazier than ever. Eventually, Doctor Strange managed to cure him, and by their mutual agreement, created a pocket dimension inside his head where he could live so his body could float in deep space and be no trouble to anyone. Unfortunately, Loki tricking his way into becoming Sorcerer Supreme meant that Strange hit his GodzillaThreshold and called on the Sentry's help... which, while in a superficially indirect fashion, accidentally unleashed the Void. The Sentry was [[{{Understatement}} not pleased.]]
*** Most recently, he [[spoiler: ended up merging his nature as Robert Reynolds with the Sentry and Void personas, becoming even more powerful than ever, with ominous black hair and [[RedAndBlackAndEvilAllOver wearing an unnerving red and black costume]]]]. However, he's not strictly evil, more like a fairly hardcore AntiHero.
* ''Franchise/SpiderMan'':
** If you're a scientist introduced by name in the Spider-Man comics, you're usually one issue away from your experiments turning you into a deranged {{Supervillain}}. Especially if [[StevenUlyssesPerhero your name conveniently sounds a lot like the type of experiment you're conducting...]]
** In almost every incarnation of Spider-Man, when he gains access to the power-enhancing abilities of the symbiote, he ends up becoming irrationally angry and cocky. Or, in the case of ''Film/SpiderMan3'', an emo. Interestingly, this doesn't actually apply to the original comic book version of Spider-Man; he wore the symbiote suit for about a year without any ill effects, and it wasn't until [[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything the suit wanted their relationship to be a little more intimate than Spidey was ready for did he realize it wasn't such a great idea]]. The [[WesternAnimation/SpiderManTheAnimatedSeries '90s cartoon]] was [[LostInImitation responsible]] for the "symbiote makes you a psychopath" aspect, [[RetCanon which eventually came into play in the comic universe.]]
** Spidey's ArchEnemy, the [[ComicBook/NormanOsborn Green Goblin]], in his original portrayal, was this. He was a [[ParentalNeglect distant father]] whose business practices were not always [[CorruptCorporateExecutive scrupulous]], but he had redeeming traits, such as genuinely loving his son, and saving Gwen Stacy's father's life. Then the formula that gave him his powers drove him insane, though periodic bouts of amnesia restored him to his former self. After he [[MoralEventHorizon killed Gwen Stacy]], however, he was rewritten as always being sociopathic, with the kinder personality that he possessed during his periods of amnesia being a false personality. The Goblin formula probably enhanced his insanity, however.
* Apparently, Creator/ChrisClaremont likes this one, or used to. In ''Comicbook/XMen'', The Phoenix being a cosmic entity was a {{Retcon}} to satisfy the then-editor-in-chief's requirement for bringing ComicBook/JeanGrey back: she had to be innocent of her crimes as Phoenix. (The destroyer of five billion lives couldn't very well be welcomed back to the team with open arms. In fact, her original HeroicSacrifice was ''mandated'' for [[RedemptionEqualsDeath that very reason]].) The original story portrayed Jean's cosmic powers as the ultimate expression of her abilities, and the change from hero to AntiHero to cosmic-scale threat as simply the result of having the sort of powers she now possessed. Comicbook/{{Storm}} also began a similar change upon maxing out her powers, but thankfully was able to return to her previous self (her power level returning to normal with it) within that issue and before she did anything particularly heinous.
** The 'return' of Comicbook/JeanGrey in the ''ComicBook/XFactor'' retread of the original Comicbook/XMen was so badly done that it left ''permanent'' damage to the storylines of the Marvel Universe. The obvious moral cop-out of 'it wasn't really her' not only undid the basic ''point'' of one of the landmark storylines of the MU, but was done in a half-assed way, because they tried to claim that Jean deserved the credit for the self-sacrifice of the Phoenix entity, but not the blame for its crimes, even though both supposedly derive from the human element from Jean. Sorry, folks, you can't have that both ways.
** To make it even worse, Claremont clearly hated the idea that the Phoenix entity was not Jean, he kept trying to sneakily [[CharacterRerailment re-retcon it back]], and the story got into the hands of other writers and mutated further, eventually becoming a total, unworkable, self-contradictory ContinuitySnarl. Nowadays, it's mostly ignored.
** Oddly enough, though, Jean's [[KidFromTheFuture time traveling daughter]] ComicBook/{{Rachel|Summers}}, who ''already'' had [[TraumaCongaLine ample reason to have gone insane]] (but didn't) ''before'' acquiring the Phoenix power, managed to wield it for ''years'' without going crazy. And then lost the power (despite the Phoenix itself insisting that it had ''permanently'' merged with her).
** Long story short, Jean's power level, mental state, and the effect these have on each other ''all'' depends on where Jean ends and the Phoenix begins. Too bad no two mentions of the Phoenix in a row give the same answer on that score. However, the cosmic critter isn't malevolent. ''Mastermind screwing with her head'' was what turned Phoenix into Dark Phoenix, and to suggest it ''might'' happen again much later in ''Phoenix: Endsong'' took a botched resurrection to again put the Phoenix out of whack. Poor Jean will NeverLiveItDown, despite this.
*** Speaking of Mastermind and his plan to gain power through unleashing the Dark Phoenix, as Jean lost her mind and became the Dark Phoenix for Mastermind's evil means, [[EvilIsNotAToy she turned on him]] and [[BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor ironically, gave Mastermind more power than he could ever comprehend,]] sending him into a coma (and insanity when he came to).
*** Oddly enough, Jean and her relatives actually tend to handle vast/cosmic scale power pretty well, Phoenix saga aside. Jean spent most of the 90's and early 2000's being incredibly powerful under her own steam, and her teenage counterpart has largely kept her powers in hand too. Meanwhile, her children, ComicBook/{{Rachel|Summers}}, [[ComicBook/XMan Nate]], and ComicBook/{{Cable}}, are all vastly powerful (intermittently, in Cable's case, and sometimes Nate's) and entirely sane. Usually. Cable seemed to undergo this when his Techno-Organic virus went into remission and he created the floating island of Providence, jacking him up to the point where he could fight the Silver Surfer on even footing, hold Providence in the air, and repair the landscape around them as they fought. As it turned out, however, it was a GenghisGambit to get the world to unite against him. Nate, meanwhile, lived in mortal terror of a combination of this and lethal cosmic scale PowerIncontinence, but largely held it together pretty well - which, for a LivingWeapon who had no functional childhood, grew up in the hell that was the ComicBook/AgeOfApocalypse, had to live with the knowledge that he was slowly dying, and had just about everyone trying to manipulate or destroy him once he got to 616, is really quite impressive. As for Rachel, of the lot of them, she's by far the sanest.
*** Then in ''ComicBook/UncannyXMen2018'', Nate appeared to a) regain his powers and then some, b) lose his marbles and declare his [[AGodAmI status as a god/messiah]]. Considering his status as a MessianicArchetype and raw power, it's a bit hard to argue with. However, it's revealed at the end of the arc that [[spoiler: he got his powers back, but at the price that he's dying, again, and he's desperate to do something good with his powers while he can]].
*** He then created the ComicBook/AgeOfXMan, a plane of existence meant to be directly opposed to [[ComicBook/AgeOfApocalypse the dystopia he grew up in]], an attempt at utopia (specifically, he wanted to help the X-Men by [[spoiler: breaking them out of their constant cycle of conflict and grief]]). Unfortunately, through a combination of his ControlFreak tendencies, attempts to disassociate himself from humanity, and screwed up background, it instead drifted far too close to a [[CrapsaccharineWorld creepily cheerful]] ''Literature/NineteenEightyFour'' clone. At the end of the arc, he conceded his mistakes and realised that he was NotSoAboveItAll (though the comic noted that BothSidesHaveAPoint) and let the X-Men go, before rewriting the reality with the assistance of [[spoiler: AOX!Magneto]] to improve it and remove the Orwellian aspects.
*** While Stryfe and Maddie Pryor are worth noting, both were clones - Stryfe remains in denial about this, while Maddie did ''not'' take it well - and Stryfe was raised by Apocalypse, while Maddie was created by Sinister as his weapon with cobbled together memories from Jean Grey. Their insanity was not exactly of their making.
*** This trope as related to the Summers family is further deconstructed in the character of Tyler Dayspring, son of either Cable or Stryfe (raised by Cable, but it's heavily implied that Stryfe is his true father). Like Stryfe and Maddie above, Tyler lost his sanity through means not of his own making (he was brainwashed in the future by one of Stryfe's minions) -- but unlike them, he has very weak mutant powers, to the point of needing to augment himself with Apocalypse's technology just to stand a chance against the heroes. In a way, Tyler got the rawest deal out of the entire Summers line -- all the insanity of this trope without any of the power.
** Claremont also established that classic X-Men adversary ComicBook/{{Magneto}}'s magnetic powers damage his sanity over time. This explains rather a lot; wouldn't being able to control one of the four fundamental forces of the ''universe'' screw you up, too? [[RedemptionDemotion This is also why he's generally a lot weaker at times when he's a good guy: he's got to hold back in order to avoid having another case of megalomania.]]
*** Some writers have tried to pull the same thing with Havok (Cyclops' brother), who controls (or at least, has a degree of access to) the Power Cosmic, ''another'' fundamental force of the Marvel universe. This is made apparent with the introduction of [[spoiler:the long-anticipated third Summers brother Vulcan, who has near-Phoenix level command of the Power Cosmic (and would be near-Phoenix level dangerous if he had more than two brain cells to rub together) but at the cost of being completely off his rocker]].
** Magneto comes close to saying this trope by name in issue two of the nineties X-Men series. When Moira [=MacTaggert=] explains how his powers played havoc with his mind, he states: "What, with great power comes mental instability?"
*** Magneto's daughters, ComicBook/{{Polaris|MarvelComics}} and the Comicbook/ScarletWitch, suffer from similar sanity-damaging "{{cursed|WithAwesome}}" powers. Insanity might be InTheBlood where this family's concerned.
*** It's implied that the Scarlet Witch's crazy came from the MindScrew the Avengers did so she'd [[spoiler:forget her maybe/sort-of/magic children]] rather than from her powers themselves. Similarly, Polaris is only crazy when outside influence is involved... it just happens to her more often than it does to anyone else.
** While not part of Magneto's family per se, a special mention should be made for his [[TheDragon Dragon]] and intended successor from the 90s, [[Characters/XMenAcolytes Exodus]]. He has psychic ComboPlatterPowers ramped up to SuperpowerLottery levels, but unlike most mutants, who manifest by puberty, his powers didn't manifest until adulthood, and then not until being forcibly awakened by ComicBook/{{Apocalypse}}. The result is a character who projects constant wide-band PsychicStatic where he goes, was implied to always be speaking telepathically and physically ''simultaneously'', and at one point was even implied to suffer from a psychic variant of schizophrenia because his telepathy was so strong. He's developed greater control of it over the years, but even as recently as 2012 it was stated that he had never actually pushed the upper limits of his powers.
*** In the ComicBook/AgeOfApocalypse this trope is inverted, as the Exodus there is shown as wearing PowerLimiter devices and not being aware of a good chunk of what he can do until a GodzillaThreshold forces Magneto to reveal some of it to him. When questioned by Bishop, Mags stated outright he limits Exodus's knowledge of his powers to keep him from being corrupted by them.
** This was {{lampshade|Hanging}}d in the ''Assault on Weapon Plus'' story arc, where the Weapon Plus files stated that super soldier experiments on criminals and psychopaths yielded less than reliable results, prompting them to find a different method of creating anti-mutant super soldiers.
** Another X-related example has to do with [[Characters/{{Wolverine}} Omega Red]], the [[UsefulNotes/SovietRussiaUkraineAndSoOn USSR's]] attempt to engineer its own ComicBook/CaptainAmerica-like super soldier. [[IdiotBall The brain trust in charge of the program chose a]] SerialKiller [[IdiotBall who'd been shot by his fellow soldiers for murdering children in his hometown.]] While initially a loyal operative, he eventually became too AxCrazy even for the KGB and was put in suspended animation, at least until the Hand freed him. He now functions as a PsychoForHire and one of the X-Men's deadliest foes.
* In ''[[Comicbook/TheNewUniverse newuniversal]]'', which is also by Creator/WarrenEllis, John Tensen gains telepathic powers that let him "see" a person's misdeeds or ignoble intentions. The first time he used these abilities, he discovered that his own nurse was planning to poison him. Tensen, not surprisingly, became AxCrazy and is now the "worst serial killer in New York City history," to quote a minor character. It doesn't help, though, that Tensen had been shot in the head before he got his powers, and as a result starts to think he's in Hell.
* ''ComicBook/{{Nova}}:'' The Nova Force is dangerous in large amounts. At one point Garthan Saal takes on the entirety of the Nova Force, and goes completely bug-nuts. It's because of this that several years later, during ''ComicBook/{{Annihilation}}'' Richard Rider is extremely reluctant to do the same. The Xandarian Worldmind has to assure Rich it'll be helping to prevent that happening, and aside from a brief, trauma-induced rampage, Rich remains mercifully un-insane. [[spoiler:But as it transpires, the strain drives the Worldmind mad. When asked, a saner part of it just shrugs and figures Rich is too human to go nuts.]]
* For a long time, it was explained that original ComicBook/AntMan Hank Pym's various mental issues were the result of the Pym Particles he used for his powers in the first place affecting his brain chemistry. While it was carryed over to the Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse, this is no longer the case in the comics, as it was later retconned that even before becoming Ant-Man, Hank was bipolar -- and this wasn't the only retcon as the much-reviled ''ComicBook/TheCrossing'' (the story that tried to say Iron Man was a ManchurianAgent for Kang) earlier attempted explain Hank's issues by saying that Hank was really Kang's first choice before he moved onto Tony and the various issues Hank suffered were really the result of this brainwashing not taking hold. However, much like retconning that it was really Immortus who enthralled Tony since only the events of ''ComicBook/OperationGalacticStorm'', ''ComicBook/AvengersForever'' revealed that Immortus lied and really did nothing to Hank's mental state.

* When the Canadian government was looking for people to join Comicbook/AlphaFlight, they initially had trouble finding recruits. The people in charge of the program decided to try creating their own superbeings, and they got the bright idea to experiment on a SerialKiller who got a pardon in exchange for agreeing to participate. The result was a crazed monster with deadly psychic abilities calling itself Bedlam. Franchise/{{Wolverine}} had initially signed on to join Alpha Flight, but this debacle was what caused him to leave the group in disgust. Fortunately, Guardian left an emergency protocol that would automatically call Wolverine should Bedlam be freed, which proved necessary when a government official unfamiliar with the backstory ended up setting him free.

** One Kryptonite Man is a scientist who thinks Kryptonite ([[KryptoniteIsEverywhere there is now a lot of it on Earth]]) can be used as a safe energy source. When he himself becomes that energy source, he decides to show the world how effective it can be by... a murderous rampage. That never ends well. Later, in the same storyline, another scientist goes cuckoo bananas when he gains control over an oversized amoeba. Or so it seems. Superman subdues the guy, who says he didn't want to do it, but Intergang, a powerful criminal organization, made him.
** Livewire, experiencing some AdaptationalHeroism after [[CanonImmigrant immigrating to the comics]], has her status as a PsychoElectro justified by the observation that, as an {{Energy Being|s}}, taking on more energy affects her equivalent of brain chemistry. In her case more power is literally more insanity. Putting her in Superman's suit from his [[DorkAge blue period]] to regulate her form snaps her to sanity immediately and she soon becomes a hero.

** Arguably [[InvertedTrope completely inverted]] in ''ComicBook/AllStarSuperman'': [[spoiler:Lex Luthor temporarily gains Superman's powers, and while he predictably rampages, he finds himself stopping to examine the amazing perspective his newfound powers and super-senses give him. He eventually concludes that having the level of power and insight that Superman does would make people care for their fellow human beings, and mellows out considerably after losing the powers]].

* Apparently, getting hopped up on Chaos Emerald Energy in ''ComicBook/SonicTheHedgehogArchieComics'' makes you do crazy things. Examples:

** Knux himself isn't safe from this, having appropriated Dimitri's mantle of Enerjak to avenge his race's decimation at Eggman's hand, only to quickly degenerate into "technology = evil" and attempt to wipe out all cybernetics from the planet, including those of the Dark Legion and his own girlfriend Julie-Su. This was caused by Dr. Finitivus, a scientist who tried to drain Knuckles' Chaos power earlier, only to have it backfire and transform him. He then decided to go and screw over the entire echidna race by deciding everyone needs to die in a fire.

** Some versions of Sonic's Super form are like this, becoming a SuperpoweredEvilSide. The best example of this is the British comic by Fleetway, in which Sonic and Super Sonic are [[JekyllAndHyde separate personalities]], and Super comes out to play when Sonic gets too stressed out or is exposed to Chaos energy.
*** Then there's the third season of Sonic X. Seeing [[spoiler:Chris and Cosmo held hostage and trapped in a glass cage]] gives a view of [[BerserkButton how upset Sonic gets]] when [[spoiler:his friends are harmed]]. Combined with the 500-odd fake Chaos Emeralds nearby, Sonic turns Dark Super, shredding two test robots (based on speed and power respectively) in the blink of an eye, complete with the ''slightly unhinged'' giggle and a "Alright, Let's try 'em out!". It took a minute and Eggman's logical prose to snap Sonic out of it, surprising somewhat as they've been at each other for years, and Sonic could quite easily rip Eggman to gibs.
*** In Archie canon, Super Scourge (Scourge being [[EvilTwin an evil version of Sonic]] who is already hyped on Master Emerald energy, so this makes him even worse than a standard super form), upon seeing that his own world (which he conquered) nor Sonic's own will accept him as King, says he's going to '''spindash''' both worlds in half just because he can, and will do this to one world after another until one gives him "the respect he deserves."
** Sonic from the games actually becomes kind of crazy when he turns into Super/Hyper Sonic, at least in the old-school games on the Genesis. Suddenly goes from fast and cocky but vulnerable to fast and cocky and ''in''vulnerable, tearing through anything in his path. And way, ''way'' harder to control.
** Back to the Archie comics: On Mobius Prime, when Amy Rose used the Ring of Acorns on herself, she became her older ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure'' self. On the MirrorUniverse world of Moebius, when Anti-Amy did it, she went certifiably ''insane''.
* Inverted ([[ZigZaggingTrope or not]]) in ''Comicbook/TheAuthority'', where the Doctor gives up his powers to a [[LegacyCharacter previous]] Doctor, who was relieved of his duties for being a [[OmnicidalManiac psychotic maniac]]. As soon as the full extent of his powers kicked in, he was [[VillainousBSOD overwhelmed]] by the empathy for every living thing in existence. Super-empathy being part of the Doctor's role as the world's shaman, makes you wonder why this guy was psychotic [[FridgeLogic in the first place]].
** Every Doctor gets a new power, added to the ones the previous Doctor who had the job had all the way back to the first one. After he went psycho, the next guy got super empathy, which he used A LOT of heroin to deal with.
* Creator/WarrenEllis' ''Comicbook/GlobalFrequency'' not only invokes this, but explains it in terms of the surgical alterations required to keep the superstrong bionic arm or whatever from physically tearing the body apart. "They gave him a mirror."
* In ''ComicBook/GoldDigger'', dragon hybrids between the tribes (Platinum, Gold, Copper, and Iron) are extremely rare and extremely powerful. Every single one has gone insane, however, with the sole exception being one of the comic's supporting cast, D'bra. And then, most dragons believe her temper is a sign that it's only a matter of time.
* In ''ComicBook/{{Hellboy}}'', losing control of one's powers and/or humanity was a major theme of the series, especially for Liz Sherman and Hellboy himself. That is to say: Liz burned her family to death by accident as a kid, and Hellboy doesn't and can't and won't use his flashier superpowers, since they mostly involve ending the world, but occasionally they get stolen, one way or another. His crown, his Name, his right hand, ALL THE BLOOD IN HIS BODY...
* A rather mundane case of this appears in ''[[ComicBook/{{Irredeemable}} Incorruptible]]''. Max Damage becomes [[SuperStrength stronger]] and [[NighInvulnerability more invulnerable]] the longer he stays awake. If he stays awake for say, a week, his powers reach PhysicalGod levels. However, he is still vulnerable to the effects of sleep deprivation. The result is someone who is mentally exhausted and strong enough to topple buildings -- an unnerving combination. Dealing with the numbness his invulnerability brings with it for years has also taken its toll on Max's sanity. Given that the premise of the story is Max's attempt at a HeelFaceTurn to save the world from an [[BewareTheSuperman evil Superman]] {{Expy}}, this causes even more problems. He needs to be strong enough to fight the Plutonian yet not let his insanity push him back toward a life of evil.
* ''ComicBook/TheMask'' is this trope. Summary of every Mask story: Person finds the mask, puts it on, discovers they're a {{Nigh Invulnerab|ility}}le VoluntaryShapeshifting RealityWarper, starts using their powers in pursuit of some logical goal, loses sight of their goal and engages in wanton violence ForTheEvulz, is either tricked into removing the mask or removes it after a WhatHaveIBecome moment.
* In ''Comicbook/{{Powers}}'', a naturally occurring variant occurs in "The Sellouts" storyline, in which a never-aging CaptainErsatz of Franchise/{{Superman}} gradually loses his connection with humanity and goes insane, [[AGodAmI declaring himself to be a God]]. It's discussed that this may partly be a result of his ever-increasing level of superpowers, which go ''way'' beyond anything seen before (to the extent that the government has lied about exactly how powerful he is in order to prevent hysteria about him), and partly because, despite the fact that he doesn't ''look'' very old, he's at least over a hundred years old and has gone senile.

* Apparently, getting hopped up on Chaos Emerald Energy in ''Comicbook/ArchieComicsSonicTheHedgehog'' series makes you do crazy things. Examples:

* All attempts to replicate the SuperSerum that gave ComicBook/CaptainAmerica his powers have [[PsychoSerum either made people go crazy]] or been used on someone who was already crazy. In fact, in the Comicbook/{{Ultimate|Marvel}} universe, this seems to be the origin for all of [[Comicbook/UltimateSpiderMan Ultimate Spider-Man's]] RoguesGallery. One of the rare ''good'' endings for someone getting the Super-Soldier serum is Isaiah Bradley, grandfather of Patriot from the ''ComicBook/YoungAvengers''. Instead of going crazy with power, he simply lost a lot of his intelligence, sort of a super-Alzheimer's. Yes, that's what passes for a good ending when trying to reproduce the Super-Soldier serum. One wonders why they keep trying.

* For a long time, it was explained that original ComicBook/AntMan Hank Pym's various mental issues were the result of the Pym Particles he used for his powers in the first place affecting his brain chemistry. While it was carryed over to the Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse, this is no longer the case in the comics, as it was later retconned that even before becoming Ant-Man, Hank was bipolar -- and this wasn't the only retcon as the much-reviled ''ComicBook/TheCrossing'' (the story that tried to say Iron Man was a ManchurianAgent for Kang) earlier attempted to retcon this, saying that Hank was really Kang's first choice before moving onto Tony and the various issues Hank suffered were really the result of this brainwashing not taking hold. However, much like retconning that it was really Immortus who enthralled Tony since only the events of ''ComicBook/OperationGalacticStorm'', ''ComicBook/AvengersForever'' revealed that Immortus lied and really did nothing to Hank's mental state.

* For a long time, it was explained that original ComicBook/AntMan Hank Pym's various mental issues were the result of the Pym Particles he used for his powers in the first place affecting his brain chemistry. While it was carryed over to the Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse, this is no longer the case in the comics, as it was later retconned that even before becoming Ant-Man, Hank was bipolar -- and this wasn't the only retcon as the much-reviled ''ComicBook/TheCrossing'' (the story that tried to say Iron Man was a ManchurianAgent for Kang) earlier attempted to retcon this, saying that Hank was really Kang's first choice before moving onto Tony and the various issues Hank suffered were really the result of this brainwashing not taking hold. However, much like retconning that it was really Immortus who enthralled Tony and since only the events of ''ComicBook/OperationGalacticStorm'', ''ComicBook/AvengersForever'' revealed that Immortus lied and really did nothing to Hank's mental state.

* SelfDemonstrating/{{Deadpool}} was probably messed up before developing terminal cancer, but the Weapon X program (which initially ''failed'' to give him a HealingFactor) gives him a hard shove in that direction. Then Dr. Killebrew experiments on and tortures him to the point of having visions of (and ''falling in love with'') [[TheGrimReaper Death]]. What finally demolishes his sanity is when Killebrew orders him killed, his healing factor finally kicks in, saving his life, making his disfigurement permanent, and causing Death to reject him. Depending on the writer, he's a mix of AxCrazy, DeadpanSnarker, gleeful GenreSavvy, and MediumAwareness. Another issue is that the HealingFactor is connected to his cancer -- he's basically an immortal living cancer. The constant state of flux and strain this places on him (including his brain) is why he's so unstable.

*** As of ''ComicBook/UncannyAvengers'', he returned as the Horseman of Death (the Void apparently got bored and wandered off), even crazier than ever.