10 DC Heroes Superman Can’t Beat on His Own

Superman is the greatest hero in the history of DC Comics. This makes sense, honestly. He’s the first superhero, gifted with the greatest powers in comics, and has played a key role in the history of the medium. Over the years, we’ve gotten some of the greatest fights from his adventures and we’ve seen him take down some of the greatest heroes and villains ever. The Man of Steel is usually considered one of the most powerful superheroes on the planet, and even when he’s not the most powerful person on the field, he usually finds a way to win. Very few heroes or villains want to fight him, because he wins. That’s just how he rolls.

However, comics wouldn’t be interesting if the heroes always won, and Superman has lost many times over the years. Looking at DC’s roster of heroes, there are some out there who the Last Son of Krypton would need help to beat, despite the breadth of his powers. Superman would need help to beat these ten DC superheroes, as their powers and skills give them huge advantages over him.

10) Swamp Thing

Swamp Thing is one of the most powerful heroes in comics. As the avatar of the Green, he has complete control of plant life. He can survive anything, constantly regrowing his body even when it’s destroyed. He and Superman have had several tussles over the years and the same thing happens every time: Swamp Thing wins. As powerful as Superman is, he can’t handle someone with the kind of power that the muck-encrusted mockery of a man has.

9) The Spectre

The Spectre is DC’s personification of vengeance, granted extreme reality powers by the Presence. He can basically do anything he thinks of, and his powers are magical in nature. If the Spectre wanted to, he could devastate Superman. He can take away all of his limbs, his eyes, his mouth, and anything else he needs to use his powers. He could almost certainly drain the yellow sun energy from his cells. He’s on another level, and the fact that his magic can hurt the Man of Steel means he would need a lot of help against God’s Angel of Vengeance.

8) Wally West

Wally West is the most powerful Flash, and it’s really not even close. He’s proven to be the best Speed Force user out there and can move many times the speed of light, as well as harnessing the Speed Force in numerous creative ways. When Wally is locked in, he’s basically unstoppable and even Superman would have a problem with him. For example, Wally knows he is weak to Kryptonite. In seconds, he can run to every S.T.A.R. Labs facility on Earth and try to find some. Or just take Batman’s Kryptonite ring out of his belt. Or hit Superman with the infinite mass punch. Wally on his own is possibly the most powerful member of the Justice League and even Superman would have a problem taking him on solo.

7) Martian Manhunter

Martian Manhunter is the definition of underrated, but he’s always been one of the most formidable heroes in the DC Multiverse. He has nearly every power that Superman has, with the addition of shapechanging, invisibility, intangibility, and telepathy. His weakness to fire is gone, so the Kryptonian’s heat vision wouldn’t affect like it once did. J’onn is weaker and slower than Clark (not by much, though), but he has a huge advantage: telepathy. He’s the most skilled telepath on Earth and he can use that against Kal-El easily. Kal has proven to be weak to mind control, so he doesn’t stand a chance against his fellow last son of a dead world.

6) Firestorm

Firestorm is superlatively powerful, but he hasn’t been popular in years, so a lot of readers don’t understand just how formidable he really is. His super strength, flight, invulnerability, and nuclear energy powers would allow him to do some damage to Superman, but the real thing that’s going to win the fight for him is his matter manipulation powers. He could transform everything around him into Kryptonite if he wanted to. He’s also shown the ability to change organic matter into inorganic matter. He’s a true powerhouse and even Superman would need help against him.

5) Star Boy

Star Boy was a member of the Legion of the Superheroes, and is one of the most powerful members of the team. His powers allow him to control gravity, which is one of the most devastating powers out there. Superman is strong, but he can’t fight against one of the four fundamental forces of the universe. On top of that, the Legionnaire could create a black hole, which would be enough to keep the Man of Steel very busy, even if he could somehow escape its pull.

4) Alan Scott

Alan Scott is one of DC’s greatest icons, and he has the power level to prove it. Scott’s powers come from the Starheart, a source of magical energy that the Guardians of the Universe experimented with before they created the Green Lantern rings. Alan’s a being made completely of magical energy, held together by his willpower, and that gives him a huge advantage over Superman. Magic doesn’t take away the Kryptonian’s powers, but it hurts him. Alan is a smart, experienced hero who is a master of his powers. He’d be able to hurt him, and the Kryptonian would need help against him.

3) Element Lad

The Legion of Superheroes is DC’s most complicated team, but also one of their most powerful. There are several members of the team who have powers that are basically godlike, like Element Lad. He’s another matter manipulator, his power allowing him to change elements of the periodic table. The young hero is from the 31st century, so he has access to elements that haven’t been discovered yet. He’s an underrated titan, and he could take out Superman pretty easily. He can do the transform into Kryptonite trick, and rob the Man of Steel of his powers quickly by transforming everything in a certain radius around him into the deadly mineral.

2) Batman

Batman is the most formidable human on Earth, and he’s beaten Superman by himself several times. Now, obviously, the Man of Steel definitely has the power to beat the Dark Knight, but he holds himself back from using his full power because he’s a nice guy. Meanwhile, Bats isn’t, which makes all the difference. If there’s any hero who can consistently beat Supes, it’s the Caped Crusader. He carries a Kryptonite ring with him all times, and has access to so much anti-Superman technology. Clark would never go all out against Bruce, which would mean that he’d need some help to beat his best friend.

1) Doctor Fate

Doctor Fate is one of the most powerful, if not the most powerful, magic users on Earth. The Helmet of Fate is powered by the Lord of Order Nabu, and Fate has access to the greatest magical library on Earth. Magic is one of Superman’s chief weaknesses, and the Justice Society’s greatest sorcerer would be able to dogwalk the Man of Steel. While the current Fate Khalid Nassour is rather inexperienced, he’s constantly studying magic and getting better. Superman is powerful and skilled, but without help, he would meet his Fate.

What DC heroes do you think can beat Superman? Leave a comment in the comment section below and join the conversation on the ComicBook Forums!

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