Thanos is one of the toughest villains in Marvel Comics history and an argument can be made that he’s one of the most potent villains in comics (he can’t beat Darkseid and Superman would destroy him; I got into an argument with someone who thought the Mad Titan was stronger than the Man of Steel and I had major shocked Pikachu face). He’s faced off against not only the most powerful heroes and villains in the universe and basically has battled the entirety of the superhero community more than once. Battling Thanos is one of the greatest challenges in comics and numerous stories have showed how dumb fighting him can be for a lot of heroes.
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Every major Marvel hero, at some point or another, has battled the Mad Titan as a part of a group, but that doesn’t mean they should on their own. Even some of Marvel’s most formidable heroes should run the other way when they see the evil Eternal. These seven Marvel heroes are tough as nails but they should never fight Thanos by themselves.
7) Jubilee
Jubilee is one of the most powerful members of the current Uncanny X-Men, but she should never fight Thanos. Her powers allow her to create powerful exploding plasmoids and they’ve definitely gotten more potent over the years, but she’s not on Thanos’ level. He’s an Eternal who can punch it out with Hulk or Thor and actually have an advantage. She’s become a lot tougher than she used to be, but she couldn’t even scratch Mistress Death’s least favorite suitor.
6) Iron Fist
While he’s not technically Iron Fist anymore, Danny Rand is the Iron Fist and is one of the most potent martial arts heroes in comics. He’s mastered chi energy and is able to use that power to thrown devastating punches and kicks. Kung fu is basically a superpower in the Marvel Universe, but it’s nowhere near enough to make him fighting Thanos interesting. He’s tough against humans and lower-level superhumans, not against beings who are feared by gods and sentient forces of nature. Thanos would destroy him easily; there’s really no way to make this battle interesting.
5) Hawkeye
Hawkeye is the bravest Avenger and it’s not even close. Clint Barton is a regular human with a mastery of one of our oldest weapons and he uses it to battle the most dangerous, powerful beings in the multiverse. That takes chutzpah and it’s one of the things that makes so many of us love him. While it can be fun to see him battle against enemies more powerful than him, it would not be fun to watch him fight Thanos because it would last all of one panel. If he has to fight the Mad Titan, then he should definitely not do it by himself.
4) Black Widow
Black Widow is one of the best spies in comics. Natasha Romanoff has been around for decades, starting out as a villain before becoming one of the most beloved female heroes in Marvel history. She was a B-lister until the MCU and the comics put her front and center numerous times. Her solo adventures are usually spy stories, so seeing her go up against Thanos wouldn’t feel right. It also wouldn’t be at all entertaining. There’s a chance she could stay out of his way and use her cunning to survive, but he can kill her in so many ways at just about any point that he wants. She’s tough but not tough enough.
3) Captain America
Whenever I write one of these lists, people in the comment point out that these heroes have fought such and such villain as a “gotcha”. This misunderstands the entire point of the list and the best way to show that is Captain America. Captain America is one of Marvel’s greatest heroes and has battled Thanos numerous times over the years, usually as a member of some kind of team and every time, he does negligible damage at best. There’s really no way for him to hurt the monstrous Eternal and any solo fight between the two of them would stretch credulity too far.
2) Mister Fantastic
On the one hand, there’s a chance that if he had enough time, Mister Fantastic could create a weapon that would allow him to beat Thanos. However, for that to work, he’d need a team to hold off the villain while he worked. In a solo fight, that’s really not possible. Reed’s pliable skin makes him almost impossible to hurt, but if there’s anyone who would be able to hurt him, it’s the Mad Titan. On top of that, there’s really not much that Richards could do on his own to actually hurt the purple half a universe eater. If you hate Mister Fantastic, then you might like this fight, but no one else would.
1) Wolverine
Wolverine is known for his brutal fights, his adamantium skeleton and healing factor allowing him to survive anything. Wolvie has fought Thanos before, as he was a part of the hero army that went after him in Infinity Gauntlet #4 and we learned that his claws could pierce the Mad Titan. However, that doesn’t mean he should fight the villain solo. Thanos’s energy powers means that he could fry the mutant to the bone any time he wants with a powerful enough blast. Sure, Logan will heal but the Eternal can just keep doing it. The ol’Canucklehead would have to be able to behead the villain immediately and even then there’s a chance that won’t work, since Thanos can’t die anymore. This isn’t a fight that would be worth seeing, honestly (I say this as the biggest Wolverine fan on the Internet).
What Marvel heroes do you think shouldn’t fight Thanos? Leave a comment in the comment section below and join the conversation on the ComicBook Forums!
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