7 Most Powerful Superheroes Spider-Man has Defeated

Marvel Comics is well-known for having its most iconic superheroes duke it out in epic clashes fueled by heated rivalries and differing ideologies. Even Spider-Man, Marvel’s most morally righteous and kind-hearted hero, has found himself on many occasions fighting against his fellow crimefighters. Although the radioactive spider bite gives Spider-Man incredible strength, speed, agility, and a Spider-Sense, he still can’t compare to many of Marvel’s heavy hitters who can shatter planets like glass. However, Spider-Man is nothing if not resilient and resourceful and he’s managed to pull off some incredible victories against some of comics’ most powerful heroes by relying on his abilities, his quick thinking, and his seeming superpower to annoy some truly gigantic egos to distraction.

Part of Spider-Man’s appeal as a character is that he rarely relies solely on raw power to defeat his enemies. Instead, by using his acrobatics and wits, the Wall-Crawler can exploit his opponents’ weaknesses and emerge victorious. These are the superheroes who learned the hard way why you don’t underestimate Spider-Man.

7) Superboy

During the period when Peter Parker’s clone Ben Reilly took up the Spider-Man mantle, he found himself caught up in a battle between the DC and Marvel universes. During the DC Versus Marvel event, the cloned Spider-Man naturally faced off against Superman’s young clone, Superboy. Even though Superboy is strong enough to topple buildings and fight other Kryptonians, Spider-Man still managed to score a win by using the hero’s strength against him. When Superboy tried to punch Spider-Man, the Web-Head dodged, which caused the Kryptonian clone to break a water tower. While the water didn’t hurt Superboy, Spider-Man webbed him up, causing him to accidentally fly straight into a high-voltage box, electrocuting him into unconsciousness.

6) Iron Man

There’s no superhero conflict more iconic than Civil War, and of course, Spider-Man found himself caught in the middle of it. Initially, Spider-Man sided with Iron Man’s Pro-Registration side and was given an Iron Spider-Suit. Still, Spider-Man’s loyalty began to waver when he discovered the prison Iron Man built to house unregistered superheroes. When Spider-Man sought to join Captain America’s rebellion, Iron Man tried to stop him. Iron Man activated the Iron Spider’s override to take control of it. However, Spider-Man, being the genius that he is, had already found and disabled the override in his suit. While Iron Man’s armor is superior, Spider-Man used his greater physical strength and quick thinking to knock down the Armored Avenger and flee.

5) Fantastic Four

In the very first issue of The Amazing Spider-Man, the Wall-Crawler completely humiliated the Fantastic Four. In a plan that makes absolutely no sense, Spider-Man thought that the best way to convince the Fantastic Four to recruit him was by attacking them and showing off his abilities. With his incredible powers, Spider-Man made quick work of all four heroes. He trapped the Thing in electric webbing, his Spider-Sense let him evade Invisible Woman’s attacks, he tied up Mr. Fantastic, and he knocked the Human Torch’s fireballs away with a baseball bat made from webbing. However, all this showboating turned out to be for nothing because Spider-Man left the second he found out that the Fantastic Four didn’t pay their members.

4) X-Men

During the events of Secret Wars, Spider-Man took on the entire X-Men team single-handedly and still won. When the Wall-Crawler eavesdrops on the mutant team, he overhears them talking about mutant oppression and joining Magneto. Not liking what he was hearing, Spider-Man jumps out and confronted Professor X, Cyclops, Wolverine, Storm, Colossus, Rogue, and Nightcrawler. Despite facing off against some of the X-Men’s strongest members alone, Spider-Man uses his strength, acrobatics, and webbing to dodge and immobilize the mutant heroes. Once he feels he made his point, Spider-Man leaves, with Wolverine remarking how the Web-Head made them look like amateurs.

3) Firelord

Like the Silver Surfer, Firelord is a former Herald of Galactus who uses the Power Cosmic to defend the universe. Yet despite being able to take hits from Thor, possessing cosmic awareness, and easily tearing apart starships and meteors, Firelord found himself to be no match for the Wall-Crawler. In The Amazing Spider-Man #269, Firelord arrives on Earth to relax, only for some people to shoot water at him with a firehose because they think he’s a threat. Enraged, Firelord attacks them, only to be interrupted by Spider-Man. He tries everything to stop the former Herald of Galactus from dousing him in a river and burying him underground. Surprisingly, Spider-Man ultimately emerges victorious over Firelord by just punching him repeatedly all over his body.

2) Hulk

The Hulk is one of the most physically powerful superheroes in Marvel, able to lift mountains and destroy planets. Under normal circumstances, Spider-Man would be squashed like a bug if he tried to defeat the Hulk in a test of strength. However, in The Amazing Spider-Man #328, the Wall-Crawler possessed the perfect power-up. When the Hulk went on another rampage, he picked the worst time to challenge Spider-Man because he had obtained the Enigma Force and had become Captain Universe. With the power of the universe at his fingertips, Spider-Man proves to be an even match for the Hulk. In the end, Spider-Man punches the Hulk so hard that he was launched into space. Thankfully for the Hulk, Spider-Man flies up and rescued the Hulk and brings him to Earth.

1) Colossus and Magik

During the events of Avengers Vs X-Men, five members of the premier mutant superhero team, Cyclops, Emma Frost, Colossus, Magik, and Namor, gain fractions of the Phoenix Force and are corrupted by its unlimited power. After Namor’s defeat revealed that the fall of one member of the Phoenix Five would empower the other members, Spider-Man found a way to defeat two beings who can warp reality and destroy planets. Even though Colossus and Magik beat Spider-Man to the brink of death, the Web-Head smartly plays into their sibling rivalry and lust for power. He goads the siblings into attacking each other to gain the other’s portion of the Phoenix Force. The gamble worked, as both Phoenix Force hosts knock each other out and are depowered.

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