20 Years On, DC Is Officially Delivering Homelander vs. Superman (& The Winner Won't Be As Simple As You Think)

You heard that right, Superman is going toe-to-toe with his cruelest copycat, Homelander. It was just a few weeks ago that DC Comics stunned the fandom with its announcement that DC K.O. was roping additional players into the tournament, and, unlike the ones we’ve seen so far, these competitors were coming from unexpected universes and franchises. Annabelle from The Conjuring, Sub-Zero from Mortal Kombat, and even Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees’ star killer, Samantha, are all appearing. As is The Boys’ Homelander, who we now know is officially going up against the Man of Steel.

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For those who have been missing out, DC K.O. centers around a tournament for the fate of the DC Universe and is pitting 32 heroes and villains against one another. With five rounds, each victory allows fighters to accrue more and more Omega Energy, with the final victor amassing enough to be a celestial figure that rivals Darkseid. But as revealed during this year’s NYCC, the fighters need more Omega Energy than exists in the DCU, leading them to alternate universes to face characters in battles that should have fans talking for years.

DC K.O. Will Officially See Superman and Homelander Fight

Ever the hype man, Scott Snyder discussed what lies ahead for DC K.O., as well as some of his other work, in an interview with CBR’s Heroes Journey podcast. During the interview, Snyder discussed the fun of DC K.O., going over all the engaging things he wants fans to have. He mentions the crossover fights briefly, saying that there would be “a giant issue” that would see Joker fighting Annabelle, while “Homelander is fighting Superman”. Now we knew that Homelander was appearing in this wild crossover, but now we know for certain that he’s taking Superman head-on.

Now even before this was confirmed, DC fans everywhere were pretty much all in agreement that Superman and Homelander should fight and, more importantly, that Superman should knock Homelander’s block off. I mean let’s face it, Superman’s a beloved champion for good and Homelander…well, the guy pretty much embodies everything modern comic fans hate about the ‘evil Superman’ trope. And the fascist aspects of his character have really made people want to see The Boys’ iconic antagonist not just taken down a peg, but utterly humiliated.

Here’s the thing, though. I don’t think a Superman vs. Homelander fight is as easy as people are making it out to be. Now I’m not suggesting Superman isn’t stronger than Homelander. Of course he is! But anyone remotely familiar with crossovers knows that writers like to make things balanced, because, frankly, one-sided fights rarely make for interesting comics. Is it even possible to really make a satisfying story when the outcome of Superman vs. Homelander is obvious to everyone?

How Can DC Comics Make This Fight Work?

To be fair, people were saying the same thing when the tournament’s participants were first announced, wondering why anyone was even bothering when heavy hitters were in the tournament. But as seen in DC K.O. #1 with the death of Batman, anything can happen. Plus we have to remember, at the center of these fights is Omega Energy, a dark power associated with tyranny and oppression. And let’s be real, if anyone’s a magnet for that kind of power, it’s a totalitarian monster like Homelander.

This isn’t gonna be a simple ‘canon Superman vs. canon Homelander’. Whoever ends up writing this fight between the two powerhouses is gonna give Homelander a boost, so he’s not immediately dog-walked by Superman. So, for anyone thinking this is just gonna be Superman punching Homelander and calling it a day, I’d say not to count on it. You don’t bring a character like Homelander in the mix and have him immediately get floored by Superman. But I totally understand why people want to see that, I do.

Homelander stands for everything that Superman doesn’t. Homelander couldn’t care less about humanity while Superman is a champion of the people. In a world where you can see the creeping threat of fascism everywhere, we don’t want to see people like that grow stronger. We want to see people like Superman come in and wipe the floor with him. But that’s not outside the realm of possibility. In fact, I think making Homelander just a bit stronger here is how DC Comics is going to end up telling the best possible story.

Superman beating Homelander with one punch like he’s Batman bopping Guy Gardner? It’d be funny, sure. But the best way for DC to handle a Superman vs. Homelander story is by making Homelander an actual threat. Aside from making for a more interesting battle, it’s going to make the victory Superman achieves that much better. Knocking Homelander out cold in one shot is a nice moment. But seeing a symbol of truth and justice overcome a symbol of supremacy in a more hard-fought battle? That’s the kind of story that Superman was made to tell.

How do you think Superman vs. Homelander is going to go? Let us know in the comments, and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!