Superman and Darkseid are two of DC’s strongest characters, and the perfect microcosm of every fight in their multiverse. Superman is the living embodiment of hope, while Darkseid is an unstoppable, unyielding God of Evil. Their clashes are just as much moral and philosophical as they are physical, and that’s part of what makes them so intense. They are two beings capable of tearing planets apart who represent each other’s antithesis. They are literally the opposite energies that influence the flow of the multiverse, so you know when they fight they give everything they have to take the other down. Over the many years, Superman and Darkseid have clashed numerous times, but here are five of their fights that stand as the pinnacle of everything their battles should be.
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5) Legion of Super-Heroes #294
The first fight between the King of Apokolips and the Man of Tomorrow actually came at the end of one of DC’s greatest comics, and contentiously the greatest Legion of Super-Heroes storyline; “The Great Darkness Saga.” Darkseid was close to finally achieving his dream of conquering the universe with an army of brainwashed Daxamites, but the Legion comes together to foster one last hope. Izaya, the Highfather of the New Gods, summons both Superboy and Supergirl and amps their abilities, letting the Kryptonian cousins beat back Darkseid. They are winning, until Darkseid uses his Omega Beams to send Superboy back to his own time. Still, the damage he dealt and Supergirl’s continued efforts bought the Legion time to surround the God of Evil and take him down. In the end, this wasn’t a battle won by Superman, but rather showed him and Supergirl as being both instruments of hope and ability, inspiring as much as they did physically. It was the perfect start to these two’s incredible rivalry.
4) Final Crisis #7
This fight hardly counts as a physical brawl between the two, but is rather the perfect capstone to the end of their relationship. By this point in Final Crisis, Darkseid is on the verge of death after taking the worst beating of his life. Orion mortally wounded him and Batman blasted him with a Radion bullet, which is effectively the concept of bullets. Ever petty, Darkseid attempts to drag all of existence down with him as he dies, and spends his final moments taunting Superman as an incorporeal spirit. Superman, however, destroys Darkseid once and for all by singing at the perfect frequency to shatter whatever remained of him. Darkseid, once the mightiest villain who had finally achieved his victory, was destroyed and his villainy undone by Superman using one of the most human things imaginable; a song. It’s poetic and powerful in a way that cinematic clashes usually aren’t, and is the perfect note to end their rivalry.
3) Superman/Batman (Vol. 1) #13
There are few things that make Superman as livid as targeting his family. This storyline saw the post-Crisis on Infinite Earths introduction of Supergirl, and Darkseid was obsessed with recruiting her to his side. In the end, they had Supergirl fake her own death to get out from under Darkseid’s gaze, but that didn’t stop Superman from being incredibly angry at how easily Darkseid thought he killed her. Superman unleashed his fury like a hurricane, dragging Darkseid into space and beating him senseless before using a Boom Tube to transport them both to the Source Wall at the edge of the universe. He threw Darkseid into it, watching the tyrant become another chunk of stone that made up the wall. This was one of the most permanent ends to Darkseid, only undone later when Superman himself was forced to free the God of Evil. Superman rarely gives fights everything he has and even less rarely lets his anger completely overtake him, but this fight shows exactly how terrifying he can be when he does.
2) Superman: Man of Tomorrow #16
You wouldn’t think that one of Superman and Darkseid’s greatest fights would come from a digital only comic, but this fight is without a doubt one of their best. Darkseid has invaded Earth and made it his mission to break Superman with his own hands. He beats the Man of Steel over and over, making sure to cause as much damage and kill as many civilians as possible with each blow. Just when he thinks it’s over, Superman catches Darkseid’s fist and completely turns the tide. He reveals that between every hit Darkseid gave him, Superman was saving every civilian. Nobody died, and now that they were all safe, Superman could show Darkseid exactly how not broken he was. He told Darkseid that even if he had broken him, Superman would always have hope, and that hope is stronger than Darkseid could ever be. With one punch packed with everything he had, Superman sent Darkseid flying, the impact so heavy that Darkseid’s Mother Box opened an emergency Boom Tube to get Darkseid away from the danger. This is everything a beatdown from Superman should be, and definitely one of his most inspiring fights. It shows how far Superman is willing to go and how much pain he’s willing to bear for the sake of a single life. It’s beautiful, and pure Superman.
1) Superman Versus Darkseid: Apokolips Now
This entire comic was built around the concept of Superman and Darkseid having a climactic battle, and what a battle it was. Darkseid had captured Steel, and Superman offered a one-on-one challenge between him and Darkseid to save his friend. While the Superman Family fought off Doomsday and the legions of Parademons, Superman and Darkseid duked it out. Despite the fact that Darkseid is physically stronger than Superman, this time the Man of Steel held his own, saying that this time he was stronger. He beat Darkseid to the point where he was blinded and couldn’t use his Omega Beams, and then the unthinkable happened. Darkseid surrendered. He said that Superman had won the day, and allowed him to take Steel and leave. As a part of their agreement, Superman could never tell anyone how the fight ended, but somehow the people of Apokolips heard, they took up his S as the symbol of their rebellion. This fight was more brutal than any other one the two have had, and is truly one of the greatest fights in all of comic books. It was a nailbitter until the very end, and definitely deserves its place in the comic book hall of fame.
So there we have five of the best fights between Superman and Darkseid in the comics. Of course, these are far from their only clashes. Which fight between the two titans was your favorite? Was it one on the list, or one that you think deserves to be up here? Let us know in the comments below!
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(Photo by Bruce Glikas/Bruce Glikas/FilmMagic)
