Don Domenico Clericuzio
When faced with the same exact situation as Corleone, (revenge requiring the murder of a son-in-law) Clericuzio does not hesitate to order the act. In fact he tells his nephew and sons that if need be Clericuzio's own daughter may be killed. That's beyond any other protagonist Puzo wrote, i think.
Puzo was accused of misogyny quite often. Never more so than right here.
That a daughter's life is of a lesser value than Clericuzio's need for revenge is insane. As a matter of fact, that scene really put me off the whole book (and the Hollywood nonsense was ridiculous. Puzo apparently never got over being fleeced by Paramount, and the bitterness is pretty evident in the way he depicts author after author getting ripped off by the studios).
To answer your three questions, Lilo:
Clericuzio is the most evil, for the reason stated above.
Don Corleone is obviously my favorite. Both of the latter Dons are just inferior characters.
I don't think any of the three are all that realistic, though. But then, I'm not a romantic in that sense
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