Every Marvel Hero Superman Has Defeated (And Captain America Isn’t One of Them)

Superman is the face of DC Comics, and he has been since his debut. Heck, he’s the face of superhero comics in general. Superman is the de facto superhero, to the point where, when people think of the archetypal hero, they’re probably going to think of the Man of Tomorrow. He’s the standard by which all heroes are measured, and the well from which inspiration for the genre was pulled. DC has made sure to always push Superman to the front and center, showing everyone that he is the superhero to end all superheroes. In DC, he’s the ultimate embodiment of what a hero is in terms of strength and spirit, but that also forces us to ask the question: how does he compare to another company’s heroes?

Superman is the number one person to crossover with the heroes from across the omniversal pond, alongside the Dark Knight, of course. He’s battled alongside plenty of Marvel heroes over the years, but he’s also battled them directly. Today, we’re taking a look at every Marvel hero that Superman has decided that he needs to beat down for one reason or another. The Man of Steel is DC’s pinnacle of power, and he’s more than proven that against even the strongest of Marvle’s combatants. So, without further ado, let’s swing into Superman’s fantastic multiversal exploits.

5) Fantastic Four

Just like Superman is DC’s first true hero, the Fantastic Four are Marvel’s First Family. They aren’t the first heroes that Marvel ever produced, but they are the team that skyrocketed the company into popularity. Their soap opera style was an instant hit, and quickly became the default for Marvel’s style, spreading across their entire line. On top of that, these four are just as optimistic as Superman, always looking for a way forward that saves everyone, without question. They travel space and time on wacky sci-fi adventures, saving lives wherever they go. They also have a tendency to battle rich megalomaniacs, funnily enough.

Their fight came in Superman/Fantastic Four, but it wasn’t much of a fight. Galactus forcibly transformed Clark into his newest Herald, and when the FF tried to free him, he easily batted them aside. Superman wouldn’t have much trouble with the Fantastic Four under normal circumstances, but adding the Power Cosmic to his already incredible strength? The team very, very quickly realized that they stood no chance against Superman, even with Cyborg-Superman backing them up. They instead focused on snapping him back to consciousness, which they eventually did. Still, he whalloped them good before he returned ot his senses.

4) Captain Marvel

Speaking of quick fights, let’s take a look at the downright quickest fight on this list, being only a few panels long. It occurred in the pages of JLA/Avengers #2, during the game where DC and Marvel’s heroes were forced to travel around both Earths, collecting objects of power. Superman and Green Lantern found themselves on the wrong side of Wonder Man and Carol Danvers, who was then going by Warbird. Like I said, this wasn’t much of a fight. While Green Lantern handled Wonder Man, Superman flew around Warbird so quickly that it sucked the air out of her lungs.

She lost immediately, while the two DC heroes continued on, undisturbed. This fight, if nothing else, shows just how much higher DC’s heroes tend to scale than Marvel’s. Carol never stood a chance, and even though she’s stronger now, I doubt the result would be much different. I would love to see an eventual rematch between these two, but I would still put all my money on Superman.

3) Thor

Speaking of JLA/Avengers, this fight was easily the central conflict of the game section of the story. Superman and Thor clashed with words, and a few blows before, but their real fight to the finish came in issue #2. They were their sides’ respective powerhouses, and Superman was being pushed towards anger by the unstable universes. Thor took that personally, and they clashed with abandon. It was a long, dead-even fight, but in the end, Superman managed to come out on top. The effort took everything he had, however, and the rest of the Avengers immediately piled on the weakened Man of Steel, aiming to avenge Thor.

The God of Thunder had plenty of advantages in this fight, to be honest. Superman is known to be vulnerable to magic, and his enchanted hammer is one of the multiverse’s most powerful magical artifacts. They were about equivalent in terms of raw power, although Superman just etched him out. The Man of Steel also matched all of Thor’s lightning with heat vision, closing that gap. This fight was everything a fan could hope for in a crossover like this, being big, bloody, exciting, and important to the plot. Best of all, it made sure to respect both characters, which is always a win.

2) Hulk

A fight between Superman and the Hulk is, frankly, one of the most obvious ones fans could ask for. Superman is the ultimate height for physical prowess in DC, and the Hulk doesn’t tout the title of being the Strongest There Is for nothing. These two are the pinnacle of strength in their respective universes, but that’s only half the appeal of seeing them clash. They’re also total opposites, with the Hulk being a monster of rage and destruction, and Superman being the embodiment of calm, selfless heroics. They are opposed in just about every regard, even down to their designs, with red and blue battling green in an awesome showcase of colors. These two were made to clash.

Case in point, Superman and the Hulk have battled three separate times. These were in Superman and Spider-Man, Marvel vs. DC #3, and Incredible Hulk vs. Superman, respectively. Superman only knocked out the Hulk in the second, but in all three crossovers, he proved to be the Jade Giant’s better. Superman commanded the battlefield, with the Hulk either not being able to hurt him or with him tossing the Hulk around with his superior skills and maneuverability. That’s all on top of actually just straight up overpowering him, which proved that, even though he might be top dog where he comes from, the Hulk isn’t really the strongest that there is anywhere.

1) Spider-Man

Spider-Man is something special to Marvel. Not only is he the company’s most popular hero by a landslide, but he’s the symbol of everything their brand of heroism looks like. Spider-Man is a deeply human man who struggles with real-world issues as much as he does supervillains. Yet, no matter how much life throws at him, he always chooses to do the right thing and save the day, no matter how much it costs him. Just like Superman showcases everything great about how DC creates heroes, Spider-Man does the same for Marvel. They are both the shining examples of what heroes should be, and the inspirations everyone else looks up to. And in that sense, they’ve crossed over plenty.

Their biggest fight came in their very first meeting, in Superman vs. The Amazing Spider-Man. Lex Luthor and Doctor Octopus joined forces to set the two heroes against each other, but, predictably, there could only be one winner. The villains tried to level the playing field by blasting the Web-Slinger full of red sun radiation, but after that element was removed, Spider-Man never stood a chance. Heck, he about broke his hands trying to punch him. Spidey has a lot going for him, but in terms of raw power, he’s not even playing the same game as Superman.

At the end of the day, the Man of Steel will always be DC’s number one, and that’s more than enough to stand up to Marvel’s catalogue, too. Which Marvel hero would you love to see him go up against? Let us know in the comments below!

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