RHINO versus THING

One Man's Prison (Marvel)
Where: The Thing #24 When: June 1985
Why: Michael Carlin How: Ron Wilson & Joe Sinnott

The Story So Far...
The Thing has returned home from his adventures on Battleworld, but his arrival proves less than triumphant when he learns of a budding relationship between Johnny Storm and his ex-girlfriend Alicia Masters!

The last place Thing wants to be is with the Fantastic Four, so he books himself a bus ticket to Ticonderoga and sets out to visit old pal Quasar, who not too long ago offered him work at Project Pegasus.

Thing isn't the only noteworthy passenger boarding the motorcoach for North Country. Fate would have it that old FF foe, The Miracle Man, is on the same busline and their journey is about to take them on the same course as a heavily armored prison truck carrying the perfect muscle for the magician -- The Rhino!

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Draw 6 (Invincible)
Intelligence: Thing 3 (Straight A)
Speed: Rhino 3 (Athlete)
Stamina: Thing 5 (Marathoner)
Agility: Thing 2 (Average)
Fighting: Draw 3 (Street Wise)
Energy: Draw 1 (None)
Total: The Thing 22 (Champion)

Step right up! It's a super heavyweight showdown in the classic Marvel style!

In one corner we have The Rampaging Rhino! Aleksei Sytsevich - a brutish thug who subjected himself to dangerous experimental procedures that greatly enhanced his strength & durability, but also left him trapped within a full body rhinoceros-like hide grafted directly to his skin.

The suit traditionally boasts powerful Rhino horns that add further threat to his charging assault, but over the years he's occasionally been modified with various armored enhancements and offensive additions. These impermanent alterations speak to fleeting attempts to update a bona fide classic!

In the other corner we have Aunt Petunia's favorite nephew! The world-savin', ever lovin' Benjamin J Grimm - otherwise known as the blue-eyed Thing!

The Thing is a man who can relate to Rhino's experience. Due to insufficient shielding on a certain fated space mission -- Grimm was subjected to dangerous levels of cosmic radiation that greatly enhanced his strength & durability, but also trapped him within a monstrous rocky exterior.

In addition to their broadly similar lot in life -- Rhino and Thing have found themselves tough enough to go up against some common enemies. Most notably, they're both recurring sparring partners for the incredible Hulk!

So far, our record can only speak for The Thing, who had a little help from an underground saboteur while grappling with Hulk in Fantastic Four #12, and fell short of a conclusion when a blow knocked him through the floor during a showdown between the Secret Defenders and FF in Fantastic Four #374!

For Rhino, the price of nigh invulnerability is his inescapable imprisonment within his ultra-durable hide, but there have been rare instances when he was briefly liberated. Frequent arch-nemesis Spider-Man used a chemical compound to dissolve the suit in Amazing Spider-Man #43, as retold in Spider-Man: Blue #2.

Thing has access to one of the greatest minds in the Marvel Universe, but in this battle they aren't on speaking terms, so we won't rely on scientific smarts winning this encounter.

The Punisher used one of Arnim Zola's dreaded Satan Claws to enhance his strength enough to knock Rhino on his ass in Punisher War Journal #3, but Thing won't need any gimmicks to deliver that calibre of punch!

We've seen him trade blows with the likes of Gladiator, Captain Marvel, Super-Skrull, Paibok The Power Skrull, Doctor Doom, The Super Adaptoid, Gomdulla, and even The Sentry, so we've gotta think he could handle the Rhino. Let's find out!

The Tape: Thing Ranking: Thing (#13)

What Went Down...

Reluctantly liberated from the prison transport taking him to Project Pegasus -- Rhino quickly falls under the spell of The Miracle Man!

His dim-witted rage is easily exploited by the carnival magician, who redirects the Rhino's frustrated rampage towards the passenger bus that ferried both Miracle Man and The Thing to the Rhino's path. An effort to eliminate any witnesses.

The passengers flee for their lives, but engrossed in his newspaper, and unwittingly under the hypnotic suggestion of The Miracle Man -- The Thing doesn't exit the bus - or see the peril coming!

Rhino collides with the side of the vehicle -- sending it grinding from the roadside towards the mountainside edge! It teeters for an extended moment and then begins the tumbling plunge down a sheer cliff!

As the bus is torn to shreds in the tumbling descent -- The Thing emerges from the twisted metal and stops his fall with a firm grip on the cliffside!

He makes the climb back to the top, where horrified onlookers are relieved to find their fellow passenger has survived his fall.

He's red hot mad about his quiet ride being interrupted and intent on collecting his $13.50 paid from the bus service -- or the one responsible for ruining his day.

Thing finally recognizes The Miracle Man at the front of the crowd, but the mentalist calls upon the Rhino to prevent a reprisal!

Thing's surprised to find the notorious villain's as big as he is. He braces for impact, but is still sent hurtling by the collision with Rhino's horn!

Buoyed by the support of the crowd, and an awareness of Rhino's reputation from Spider-Man and the Avengers, Thing picks himself up from the rocks that broke his fall, and prepares to return fire.

"I'm gettin' up, Rhino -- now's yer chance ta beg fer mercy! No response, eh? Yer just gonna stand there like a mope, eh? Okay, big boy --"

The hypnotized Rhino is unresponsive to Thing's warning -- taking the full brunt of an overhanded right punch that sends him flying through the air!

The Rhino crashes into more nearby mountain rock, but the blow shakes him out of his hypnotized stupor.

He's back on his feet and of his own sound mind, but before Rhino can get to grips with what's going on -- he's instinctively charging to meet an oncoming Thing!

The two super-heavyweights lock up and Rhino tries to tell The Thing he's been acting under somebody else's spell. That the blows have shaken him out of it.

Already feeling the weight of the world, and caught in the heat of battle, Thing ignores the grappling Rhino's plea for reason, and hurls him violently across the makeshift battlefield!

The toss leaves the already bruised Rhino rattled -- and gives Thing time to think about his opponent's claim.

The seasoned hero knows he was influenced by Miracle Man's power on the bus, and it stands to reason that Rhino could be too -- even if he is one of the bad guys. So he gives the villain a chance to explain and it all makes sense.

The Hammer...

The battle leaves Rhino stopped in his tracks, but more torturous than the beating is the thought that he may have lost his ticket to Project Pegasus for the apparent breakout attempt.

His prison sentence was to be shortened in exchange for submitting to an experimental Pegasus program designed to further understanding for dealing with super-human criminals. If all went well, it could also potentially end in freeing Rhino from the hide he was surgically grafted within.

Sytsevich has had enough of being trapped inside his in-human grey coating and taken advantage of for his power. A sob story that hits close to home for the ever lovin' Thing, who fully intends to vouch for the super-criminal, and give him a shot at returning to a normal life. The kind of chance Thing wishes he could have, if his cosmic ray-induced mutation could be so easily reversed.

Unfortunately for both of them -- Miracle Man has other ideas and isn't about to let everyone just walk away!

I've always thought of Miracle Man as one of the rare misses from the legendary original Stan Lee & Jack Kirby run of Fantastic Four. He's just a bit too cliche and ill fitted for the FF, who found a more interesting mystic nemesis in Diablo.

Yet, in classic comics style, he became a bit more appealing as he lingered, better matched against Son of Satan and The Defenders, and ultimately an interesting throwback to return in The Thing solo series, which was a bit hit & miss over its three year run. Pairing him up with a bigger name villain for a dream match really helps sweeten the issue, series, and Miracle Man's return in general.

There's more action to be had, with an unexpected fourth player, but that's a fight for another day. For now, we're enjoying the simple pleasures of a marquee match-up between two of Marvel Comics' classic super-heavyweight bruisers!

The jaded grump in me thinks this kind of issue is a thing of the past in American comic books, for better or worse, but I was excited to see the recent announcement of a new five-issue mini-series that will take The Thing on a clobberin' tour of the Marvel Universe.

It might not be a pleasing, carefully considered, character-driven dream bout, but I'm never the less interested to see what comes of a brawling gauntlet through some of Marvel's classic and obscure villains. Assuming all is as it seems, that brand of uncomplicated fun with favourite foes could really hit the spot!

The Rhino match doesn't quite live up to the hype, but sometimes it's nice when these punch-ups give way to a sympathetic sub-plot. I know we're on The Comic Book Fight Club, but hey. Sometimes there's more to life than violence!

That Rhino starts the issue just as nervous as the Pegasus sentries guarding him is a nice touch, setting up his anxiety about seeing his stay through without any incidents. Rhino might be a bit of a dummy, but he's been around long enough to know trouble has a way of finding him. He doesn't want any of it. Not this time!

Ron Wilson is established as one of the great Thing artists, but I also really enjoy his classic rendering of Rhino here. He's got the Romita dimensions and broad face that gives the design a lot of character despite its relative simplicity.

This is the Rhino I like to see. I sure as heck don't want any mech-suit nonsense, and I could really do without the decorative jewelry and padding as well. There are plenty of characters who are better suited to all that jazz. Rhino might not be fancy, but he's one of a kind. A classic model you don't need to mess around with.

As for the verdict for today's featured fight... It teeters on the brink of the inconclusive, with Thing sympathetically helping Rhino to his feet, but I think the brawl is decisive enough to call this one a win for The Thing, even if we consider it an asterisk for Miracle Man's influence dulling Rhino's awareness. The blows stopped him in his tracks and he is as good as tapped out.

Should we take a look at what happens when Rhino faces his would-be master? If you'd like to help make that happen sooner than later, you might like to consider becoming a supporter on Patreon this holiday season.

Secret Wars on Infinite Earths has featured well over 700 fights and ranked more than 1,000 of your favourite characters! You can find 'em all by diving in to the Secret Archive for a complete index in order of publisher, series, and issue number -- or by following links throughout each post to discover more from your favourite characters, creators, series, and categories!

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Winner: Thing
#11 (+2) The Thing
#1087 (-11) Rhino
#668 (new) Miracle Man [+1 assist]

THE SPOT versus SPIDER-MAN

Breakin'! (Marvel)
Where: Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man #100 When: March 1985 Why: Al Milgrom How: Al Milgrom

The Story So Far...
From a skyscraper overlooking Manhattan, Wilson Fisk employs a staff of scientists working to develop super-powers to bestow upon loyal agents, serving to maintain his grip on New York City's organized crime.

One such recipient was The Black Cat, whose new bad-luck powers come with strings attached, but as she and Spider-Man plot a confrontation to remove The Kingpin from their lives -- another super-powered agent emerges to run interference!

Dr. Johnathan Ohnn's experiments have covered his body with inter-dimensional portals - transforming him into The Spot! He works in secret, hidden from the cameras that monitor The Kingpin's empire, and with Spider-Man on his way, The Spot waits in ambush to settle the score before deciding his allegiance.

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Spider-Man 5 (Super-Human)
Intelligence: Draw 5 (Professor)
Speed: Spider-Man 4 (Olympian)
Stamina: Spider-Man 5 (Marathoner)
Agility: Spider-Man 5 (Cat-Like)
Fighting: Spider-Man 3 (Street Wise)
Energy: Draw 2 (Projectiles)
Total: Spider-Man 29 (Metahuman)

Dr. Jonathan Ohnn was assigned by The Kingpin to research and reproduce the dark energies of Cloak, but when a city-wide power outage interrupted his experiments, he stepped into a void of light & dark, transforming into The Spot!

The Spot's white figure is dotted with black voids that are functioning portals between the material world and a "Spotted Dimension". Similar to Cloak, he can use these portals for instantaneous teleportation of himself, or others, creating intricate redirections that can turn a person's punch back onto themselves!

We saw these classic Spot tactics employed in battle against Spider-Man in Amazing Spider-Man #589, which also demonstrated his ability to project portals throughout surrounding space to set up handy ambushes.

Because The Spot's actions are intertwined with a dimension beyond the fabric of our reality, he's potentially able to attack without triggering Spider-Man's spider-senses -- one of his greatest advantages against the wallcrawler!

Ohnn's a scientist, not a fighter, but by deploying floating portals he can challenge Spidey's agility and maneuverability by throwing surprise punches from all directions. Keeping Spidey guessing is his best bet at levelling the playing field!

These guys have only met briefly before this match-up, but as we know, all Spidey really has to do is stay on his toes, keep his wits about him, and counter those attacks to have a shot at winning. Let's see how he did...

The Tape: Spider-Man Ranking: Spider-Man (#2)

What Went Down...

Spider-Man swings his way pensively through the city towards a rendezvous at The Kingpin's high-rise headquarters. He knows he's probably heading straight into dense security, but right as he wonders about the whereabouts of a strange new wildcard in the Manhattan crime ranks -- a black portal pops into existence!

The air is suddenly a swarm of tiny black holes as The Spot emerges from the largest portal in answer to Spider-Man's musings!

The sudden appearance sends Spider-Man into an unprepared tumble, navigating the array of portals, while twisting his body to spray a blanket of webbing back from whence he came!

The web closes in too quickly for Spot to catch such a wide net in a single portal, so he rapidly improvises a gathered cluster of nearby spots into a single doorway that sends the snare into the vacant void of another dimension.

Spot follows it through, using his inter-dimensional vantage point to reach through multiple smaller portals to throw two punches and a kick from opposite directions, while his head peeks out from a spot from up above.

Spidey's danger warning senses help him navigate the throng of hostile limbs, sending him leaping from the rooftop to stay clear of the blows.

Safely out of view clinging to the side of the building, Spidey crawls around the facade, forcing The Spot to seek out his prey as it circles around behind him.

The wall-crawler silently vaults over a brick structure jutting from the rooftop, and nimbly flips out of a squat to land directly behind The Spot's head poking out of a portal. He winds up to deliver a sucker punch right to the side of the head!

Spider-Man's fist swings without contact as it sinks into the stretching abyss of one of the portals Spot had preemptively amassed across his vulnerable cranium!

As Spot's disembodied hands wave judgmental fingers from nearby floating portals -- Spider-Man is struck with a moment of inspiration from the eeriness of it all. He feigns defeat, vowing to keep clear of the portals - fleeing for the relative safety of higher ground!

The Spot responds to his cowardice with a frisbee toss of dozens of portals that follow the web-slinger to the vantage point of the looming brick box.

A stiff left fist flies straight at the wallcrawler's jaw as he struggles to block it, followed by a wild right foot that kicks right in his face!

A right hook swings out of another portal -- knocking Spidey off his perch!

Down on the rooftop and completely surrounded by portals -- Spidey endures further punishment as they close in around him and he's struck with two disembodied fists from either side!

He struggles to march forward -- paying for his determination with a thrust kick to the back!

Spider-Man perseveres, taking the back of another fist to the base of his skull -- while a rising heel kick catches him low and sends him falling to the ground.

He keeps crawling forward, even as a right hand rains down from above!

The Spot applauds his opponent for running the gauntlet of his wild and unpredictable blows, but prematurely presumes victory from their impact.

Crawling towards The Spot's feet, Spider-Man reveals his true gambit!

With so many portals distributed around the rooftop, The Spot's body has become a predominantly white mass of mortal muscle and flesh!

With his target in reach -- Spidey unleashes a devastating left to the jaw!

As The Spot reels from the blow, Spidey sinks his fist into the scientist's exposed body! It's enough to send The Spot into a panicked retreat!

The rookie super-villain finds refuge within one of his portals, but from the array intrudes Spider-Man with a stern warning that he'd best rethink his life of crime!

The Hammer...

There might be an argument that The Spot made a successful getaway, but the proportionate strength of a spider helps Spider-Man not only endure the pummeling of a one-man gauntlet, but also inflict swift pain sufficient enough to drive him into a panicked retreat.

Unlike their much later encounter in Amazing Spider-Man #589, The Spot doesn't get away scot-free. If he were walking away, he might've limped. We can't forget that Spidey packs a punch, and Jonathan Ohnn's a hapless scientist. This one hurt: "Whew! He could have killed me!"

This was the second battle between the pair after The Spot's active debut in the last issue, and origin story in Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man #98.

It's nice to see their knowledge of each other, and tactics, evolving accordingly, but as we already know, this is all just preamble to a main event showdown with The Kingpin. Well worth your time, if you haven't read.

It's all part of a double-stuffed 100th issue that also boasts compelling B story revolving around Black Cat's relationships with Spidey and The Kingpin, and a simmering on-going subplot of the black symbiote working its way back to Spider-Man. Material that, for a long time, made this one of my favourite acquisitions from diving into the comic book store $2 bins in the early/mid nineties.

I'm reluctant to call it my "Local Comic Shop". There probably wasn't any closer store, but it was a solid forty-five minute trip to get there. Well worth it, of course. Tony, the steadfast proprietor throughout that heady decade, always treated me very well. It wasn't unusual for him to give me an extra discount from within the fortress-like elevated square that served as a 360 degree counter. Even on the cheap ones.

I scored some more issues of Spectacular Spider-Man from rummaging through those $2 and $1 boxes on a subsequent visit. I was already a big Sal Buscema fan by that point, so an affordable stack of Spectacular issues might not have been the cutting edge of trends, but was the next best thing to sliced gold, as far as I was concerned. There were great issues in there that we'll probably talk about some day in the future, but #100 was always just a bit special.

The Kingpin fight might've been a classic piece of Spidey business, but I always thought fondly of this issue for the appearance of The Spot.

Back in those days, wisdom probably had it that Spider-Man didn't have any real business regularly tangling with a master of inter-dimensional portals. That's the kind of thing Doctor Strange deals with. Spidey's at his best with super-powered mobsters, and villains with their own proportionate powers of an animal or insect.

Not surprisingly, The Spot stuck to his word, and apparently gave up his life of crime after today's fight. He was out of action for more than a decade, and when he finally showed up again in Spectacular Spider-Man #245, it was as a precursor to the formation of The Legion of Losers -- a quartet of unloved oddball villains led by The Grizzly. Not exactly the bombshell return of a fan-favourite badguy.

Yet, I always liked The Spot. Al Milgrom juggles The Spot's movement and powers brilliantly, effectively using his head portals to create uncanny expression with what passes for a mouth and eyes, while his limbs pop out of two-dimensional discs that hover in an implied three-dimensional reality.

Coming from the pages of Spectacular gave him a certain pedigree, in my mind, and tangential ties to Cloak supplied him with an interesting place in the world, and strikingly graphic design related to his powers, even if it looked better here than when Herb Trimpe ran through his first fight in issue #99.

Like a lot of great arch-villains, The Spot also challenges the hero with a direct counter to one of his key powers: in this case - agility.

His rapid distributions of portals, and body-contorting array of applications, including turning an opponent's attack back against them, forces a character like Spider-Man out of his routine comfort zone, provoking inventive new applications of his abilities to find a solution to the problem.

Spidey evades some of the attacks in today's featured fight thanks to his danger-warning spidey senses, but later iterations of the character will also further exploit The Spot's otherworldly abilities, making his inter-dimensional maneuverings logically more difficult to track.

In the last decade or so The Spot seems to have become a more regular fixture, tangling with various Marvel heroes, with a new mainstream peak coming from his role in the animated feature film Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse. Something I never would've thought I'd be saying about the villain from the $2 box!

You can find more from the so-called "Spider-Verse" with Miles Morales, Spider-Man 2099, Ben Reilly, Spider-Boy, and more, by following links throughout this post, or by diving into the Secret Archive for a complete index of featured fights from the multiverse in order of publisher, series, and issue number.

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Winner: Spider-Man
#2 (--) Spider-Man
#652 (-177) The Spot

SPIDER-MAN versus KINGPIN

Breakin'! (Marvel)
Where: Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man #100 When: March 1985 Why: Al Milgrom How: Al Milgrom

The Story So Far...
An agreement to delay their joint attack on The Kingpin sends Black Cat and Spider-Man into the lion's den alone in simultaneous, uncoordinated attempts to infiltrate Wilson Fisk's Manhattan stronghold by night.

Spider-Man is delayed by The Spot in a rooftop battle that leaves him unaware Black Cat has already confronted The Kingpin, and learned the cruel twist of the super-powers that threatened to force her into his criminal employ.

Spider-Man can hardly believe his lover has already negotiated her release from The Kingpin's influence, but with her bad luck powers already spreading to those closest to her -- can Spidey survive his own run-in with the furious crime baron?!

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Spider-Man 5 (Super-Human)
Intelligence: Spider-Man 5 (Professor)
Speed: Spider-Man 4 (Olympian)
Stamina: Spider-Man 5 (Marathoner)
Agility: Spider-Man 5 (Cat-Like)
Fighting: Kingpin 5 (Martial Artist)
Energy: Spider-Man 2 (Projectiles)
Total: Spider-Man 29 (Metahuman)

As The Kingpin of crime in New York City: Wilson Fisk rarely needs to get his own hands dirty, but don't let his clean white suit and army of assassins fool you into thinking he can't or won't.

Behind Fisk's bulky façade is a powerful and skilled fighter who worked his way up from the streets, and became an adept hand-to-hand combatant. We saw that when he single-handedly fought a horde of Hand ninja in Daredevil #116!

The Kingpin stays fighting fit with frequent private sparring sessions, always ready to personally dominate criminal rivals, or arch-enemies who might visit upon his legitimate headquarters, such as Daredevil, Punisher, Echo, or Spider-Man.

Our Tape shows Spider-Man ahead in most combat categories, but Kingpin is close enough in strength & speed to exert physical dominance over the slight, but super-human Spider-Man. His intelligence, though not quite as academic, also has tremendous application in complex tactical strategies, and psychological warfare.

In this battle we'll see Kingpin wield his secretive manipulations of Spider-Man's lover of the time, Black Cat, as a means of pushing the web-slinger's buttons. His superior fighting skills are ready to take full advantage of a reckless foe.

Spidey may've outlasted an opponent as powerful as The Juggernaut, and will take down super-strong mobster Tombstone, but as we saw in Marvel Team-Up #63, he came completely unstuck against the martial fighting skill of Steel Serpent. He'll also be unceremoniously ejected from Mister Negative's private criminal headquarters in the much later Amazing Spider-Man #621.

Kingpin's exploration of the same darkforce energies linked to Negative have an indirect influence on the battle, given Spidey had to fight through The Spot on his way to Kingpin's office.

Fisk's investment in developing manufactured super-human abilities is also the root of his hold of Black Cat, who received the unnatural ability to inflict bad luck, which could be starting to effect Spider-Man. Will it cost him now? Let's find out!

The Tape: Spider-Man Ranking: Spider-Man (#2)

What Went Down...

Standing alone in a darkened office: The Kingpin is still basking in a psychological victory over the Black Cat when his doorway is suddenly filled with the tumbling bodies of half a dozen hired guards.

Following close behind is the one responsible for their defeat -- Spider-Man!

The spider descends from the ceiling, hanging upside down at the room's entrance from a line of webbing. He exchanges small talk with the disingenuously accommodating host, discovering his hopes of negotiating a release of Black Cat's obligations to the crime baron has already been achieved.

The Kingpin gloats of the private rendezvous, which in truth occurred mere moments before Spider-Man's arrival -- unbeknownst to her wall-crawling lover.

With his spider-senses warning him of potential danger; Spidey shifts from disbelief to anger, swinging overhead to surprise Kingpin with a rear assault. He pays dearly for resorting to such an impulse act!

Trained in the martial arts and deceptively fast for a man of his size -- The Kingpin immediately throws his arms back to secure a firm grip of Spider-Man's arms, then vaults him overhead to spike him violently into the ground!

Spidey endures the impact, using educated limbs to lock his ankles around Kingpin's head and turn the tables by launching his mighty adversary off his feet!

The momentum sends Fisk vaulting overhead and crashing into the wall, but he too proves capable of absorbing the punishment.

Rising to one knee, The Kingpin compliments his nemesis for his strength and agility -- then he charges!

Spider-Man meets his towering adversary with a rising uppercut, but The Kingpin simply takes it on the chin and then uses his height advantage to bring two massive fists slamming down on him like wild sledge hammers!

A straight kick launches Spider-Man's limp body across the room!

The wall-crawler twists his agile body in mid-air, landing first with a handstand press to The Kingpin's desk, before springing immediately onto the adjacent wall!

Spider-Man gloats that strength means little when he can cling to any surface, but The Kingpin challenges the claim by grabbing his desk and ramming it into the wall-crawler!

A spiral staircase provides refuge for Spidey as he's flung through the air and grabs hold of the center pole. This too proves a temporary reprieve, however, as The Kingpin grabs hold of the metal railing and rips the staircase out of the wall!

The incredible feat of strength backfires as the weight of the staircase keeps Fisk's hands busy, while Spider-Man directs himself to plummet feet-first directly into his head!

More painful than the hit itself is the indignity Wilson Fisk feels. Furious, he vows to kill his enemy in the name of his ailing wife.

The enraged crime boss charges once more at the wall-crawling hero, but Spider-Man meets him with another well timed uppercut!

He follows with a wild swinging kick to the face, then uses his web to swing from the wall into a high velocity double-foot kick that launches Kingpin off his feet!

Fisk lurches off the floor, wiping at his mouth while his other fist is clenched. He furiously vows to crush Spider-Man, leaving the hero no choice but to act on his warning: "Don't try it, Kingpin. I'm warning you..."

Clasped fists, swung with a polish hammer punch, knock The Kingpin back off his feet and send him flying into hi-tech security computers.

Sitting amongst the broken technology, Kingpin gathers himself and returns to a cold and deliberate tone. "I-I lost my head there for a moment, Spider-Man! Forgot the true direction I wanted my vengeance to take! To kill you would be too quick. Too merciful!"

He reaches for a glowing red button that will summon the police to the building: private New York City property that Spider-Man is trespassing upon -- even if they both know the supposedly "clean" businessman is the true crook.

Though physically defeated, Kingpin finds some small way to hold it over Spider-Man, opening a window and inviting him to leave. A leap Spider-Man is happy to take as Kingpin reaffirms his commitment to releasing Black Cat from his roster.

The Hammer...

A fight-filled milestone issue concludes with an exciting face-off between arch-enemies! Spider-Man may've bested Kingpin in the physical arena, but the battle of wills continues, with Spidey slinking into the night to the sound of police sirens.

You and I may know Wilson Fisk as the figurehead of organized crime in New York City, but to the rest of the world his record remains clean. A fact he takes great pleasure in gloating about as he shows Spider-Man to his office window.

It's a fight that feels worthy of the one hundredth issue of Spectacular Spider-Man -- especially given the shadow Kingpin had cast over the crime-ridden series.

There were crooks and gang wars throughout the Spider-Man titles in the 1980s and 90s, but I will always associate Spectacular, in particular, with its street-level crime. That's thanks largely to the grand plans of Kingpin, his entanglement with Black Cat, and the later Tombstone issues. All a very good time!

It's nice to be reminded that Kingpin remained a thorn in Spider-Man's side, even after the epoch making work of Frank Miller permanently associated the villain with Daredevil just a few years earlier. That rivalry wouldn't quite go semi-exclusive until much later, although it feels as if Al Milgrom dances stylistically between a classic Romita Kingpin, and the shadowy figure of DD.

Kingpin battles Spider-Man having already exacted revenge upon Black Cat for her prior indiscretion of stealing a nuclear detonator from him. An act that allowed the weapon to fall into the hands of Doctor Octopus, and inspired an unlikely plot to grant Black Cat the unnatural power to inflict misfortune upon others: useful in a fight, but inevitably isolating as it slowly effects those she holds closest.

It's a bit of a convoluted way for Black Cat to gain super-powers of her own, but I'm charmed by the character-driven motivation for Wilson Fisk to avenge, not the theft, but the consequence of it, which left him totally helpless to defend his city when Doc Ock threatened nuclear annihilation.

It isn't much good being a Kingpin of Crime if your turf is blown sky high, but beyond the simple business of organized crime, I also appreciate the tinge of Napoleonic civic pride a character like Wilson Fisk might feel towards his city. The same sense of place that drives Spidey and DD to defend their chosen zones.

In the "Tape" section we list Spider-Man as the stronger of the two combatants, but that reflects both a peak of power available but only occasionally accessed by Spider-Man, and the necessary dual role that Strength serves in the absence of a Durability stat. A measure of offensive and defensive potential.

The number certainly shouldn't undercut the narrative feat of besting Kingpin, who is a powerful and imposing figure, whose baseline strength borders on the super-human, and could easily overwhelm even Spidey.

The office-dismantling details of todays featured fight should serve as a good example of Kingpin's strength, but I hope to explore his abilities further. Though best known as a general overseeing an army of assassins and thugs, Kingpin has always been characterised as a very capable combatant.

I'd also like to expand our reference portfolio for more of Spider-Man's classic foes, and perhaps return to Spectacular Spider-Man #100 for some of its other conflicts, such as the emergence of Kingpin's unwitting creation: The Spot!

If you'd like to support further entries into the Secret Wars on Infinite Earths you can become a backer on Patreon. Your kind contribution will help make regular updates like this possible. As a thank you you'll unlock additional commentary, customized article options, and maybe even some early access bonuses.

You can also help the site while getting your hands on your own copy of today's featured issue collected in Essential Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man Volume 5 or Spider-Man: The Complete Alien Costume Saga - Book Two! Do any of your shopping via the Amazon purchase links below and you'll not only get yourself a good deal -- you'll ensure the kingpin of online supports the site!

Secret Wars on Infinite Earths has featured more than 650 featured fights and ranked well over 1,000 characters! Catch up on the 2021 Rankings Recap and Top 20 Fights of Season 2021 -- or discover more from your favourites by following links throughout this post, or by diving into the complete Secret Archive!

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Winner: Spider-Man
#2 (--) Spider-Man
#1005 (-6) Kingpin

ANTI-MONITOR versus SUPERMAN, DOCTOR LIGHT & SUPERGIRL

Beyond The Silent Night (DC)
Where: Crisis on Infinite Earths #7 When: October 1985 Why: Marv Wolfman & Robert Greenberger How: George Perez

The Story So Far...
Manifesting on a moon of the anti-matter universe of Qward: The Anti-Monitor channeled that dimension's energies into fulfilling its ultimate domination. Sensing his equivalent, The Monitor, in a positive universe, he then set his sights on inter-dimensional conquest that resulted in their mutual dormancy for eons.

This slumber was broken by the experimental hubris of scientist Kell Mossa, who inadvertently roused the Monitors while attempting to learn the secrets of the universe. This allowed Anti-Monitor to enact a plot to destroy all universes comprising positive matter. Thus begins the Crisis on Infinite Earths!

Scouring the multiverse, The Monitor assembles heroic powers to fight the threat of existential annihilation. With some worlds now saved, Mossa channels positive and negative matter to guide the heroes through the universal membrane -- to confront the verge of the Anti-Monitor's hidden fortress!

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Anti-Monitor 7 (Omnipotent)
Intelligence: Anti-Monitor 6 (Genius)
Speed: Superman 6 (Mach Speed)
Stamina: Anti-Monitor 7 (Unstoppable)
Agility: Doctor Light 7 (Unlimited)
Fighting: Superman 3 (Street Wise)
Energy: Anti-Monitor 7 (Cosmic Power)
Total: Anti-Monitor 33 (Super)

When it comes to cosmic threats to the DC Universe it doesn't get much bigger than the Anti-Monitor! His aims threaten to unmake reality itself!

We saw The Flash take down his Anti-Matter Cannon in Crisis on Infinite Earths #8, but the only time we've actually recorded Anti-Monitor in battle was much later, when he returned as part of the Sinestro Corps in Green Lantern #25.

In that epic encounter, it took the combined efforts of the Guardians of the Universe, Green Lantern Corps, Earth's heroes, and one of the Anti-Monitor's own teammates, to destroy him! It bodes well that it was Superboy-Prime who struck the final destructive blow -- but we're getting way ahead of things!

Superman is the primary target in today's featured battle, but he isn't alone!

Japanese scientist Kimiyo Hoshi was studying the anti-matter phenomenon when she was struck with a beam of ionic energy passing through an unstable star in the Vega system. The cosmic force was enacted by The Monitor, who turned her into a new soldier for good - the photonic hero Doctor Light!

Kimiyo Hoshi shouldn't be confused with the villainous Arthur Light, even though her costume and powers bear some similarity. This Doctor Light is determined to the point of arrogance, unwilling to suffer fools as she applies her knowledge of science to mastery over energy and light-based powers.

Doctor Light can offer Superman powerful support against the awesomely destructive energies wielded by the Anti-Monitor. Her ability to move as light particles can also compliment one of their few advantages over the awesomely powerful anti-matter entity -- superior speed!

We've seen Superman keep pace with Barry Allen [Flash: Rebirth #3] and Wally West [Flash #209], and if he can use that speed in combat he could tactically wear Anti-Monitor down. Strength and durability alone probably won't cut it this time, but there will be extra muscle on its way once the fight begins.

When Supergirl enters the fray, she effectively doubles their power! We saw her go toe-to-toe with Captain Marvel in Crisis on Infinite Earths #6, and Martian Manhunter in Adventure Comics #450! She'll also revisit the conflict with Mary Marvel decades later in Final Crisis #6!

With both Superman and Supergirl fighting, it's conceivable the Anti-Monitor could be damaged sufficiently to be defeated. The extra hands mean he can be subdued and tag teamed, with Doctor Light weaving in and out, as well. Will that be the case? Only destiny can decide this one! Let's meet their fate...

The Tape: Superman, Doctor Light & Supergirl Ranking: Superman (#5)

What Went Down...
Penetrating the deepest sanctum of the great cosmic fortress: Dr. Kimiyo Hoshi and Superman stand in awe of a massive mechanical solar collector. While Doctor Light examines its advanced technology, Superman closes in to begin its ultimate destruction -- unaware of the figure lurking behind him in the shadows!

Pain racks his body like never before as Superman is engulfed by the Anti-Monitor's awesome power! Here, his incredible strength and invulnerability will count for nothing. He is a mortal opposing the powers of a virtual god!

Kal-El's cry of agony echoes through the fortress, heard from afar by the super-humanly sensitive ear of Supergirl. She abandons the battle outside and follows the sound, but its Doctor Light who comes to his aide first.

Anti-Monitor effortlessly backhands Superman across the chamber and through a nearby wall. When Doctor Light attempts to intervene, her point blank beams of energy do nothing to deter their target. Anti-Monitor shows her how it's done!

He renews his pursuit of Superman, looming over the Man of Steel as his giant clasped hands smash against the Kryptonian's face! Every strike is another blow delivered to the hopes of the multiverse!

The cosmic titan stands ominously over the bruised Superman with his face obscured in smoldering energy. He means to deliver a finishing blow, but didn't count on Supergirl smashing through the halls of his fortress!

Faster than a speeding bullet she flies directly at the Anti-Monitor to deliver a devastating left hook! She keeps him off balance, following with an all mighty right that sends him smashing through another stone wall!

The advantage is short lived. Anti-Monitor swings wildly, launching Supergirl across the fortress with a furious left!

The enraged Anti-Monitor fires a beam of energy that catches Supergirl's limp body before she can land. She's sent tumbling in the air like a rag doll!

Promising death, he turns his attentions back to the wounded Superman -- but again the Anti-Monitor will be denied! Supergirl doggedly digs her heels in and rips the stonework up like a proverbial rug -- staggering the cosmic monster and sending his hand blasts harmlessly off course as he loses footing!

The Girl of Steel darts across the rubble to pour on punches from a mounted position. The strength and fury of her devastating blows begins to crack the Anti-Monitor's life-shell armor. He retaliates with a wild blow to the face, but the damage is already done! Power pours from his destroyed body!

With his power quickly waning, the Anti-Monitor must seize his opportunity to destroy his enemies and the worlds they come from.

As his body burns with leaking energy, the heroes huddle together, and Supergirl recruits Doctor Light to flee with her injured cousin while she plots a final desperate stand. She throws herself at the burning figure like a torpedo!

The trajectory takes the warring figures on a collision course with the solar collector machine - destroying it! Supergirl refuses to stop, still smashing her fists into the Anti-Monitor as they both burn within the machine's core!

Horrified, Doctor Light feels compelled to help the brave heroine -- but Supergirl desperately orders her to go. A momentary lapse that gives Anti-Monitor the chance he needs to lock his arm around her and unleash his raw power!

Superman can only watch in horror as untold cosmic energies completely consume Supergirl's body and a solid beam blasts right through her!

Anti-Monitor makes a desperate escape, running for a nearby ship as his body begins to fail him. He lives to fight another day. Supergirl will not.

Superman cradles his cousin's broken and bloodied body as her indomitable will at last begins to fade. She tells the Man of Steel not to cry. His example taught her to be brave - and she was. She dies knowing Anti-Monitor's machines were destroyed and the lives across multiple worlds were saved. 

The Hammer...
Supergirl's act of supreme sacrifice succeeds only in delaying the Anti-Monitor, who fled on the brink of destruction, but will return in the next issue fully healed, and wearing a newly formed shell that is his iconic armored design.

The battle and its result provides the first in a one-two punch of iconic deaths that set the stakes of Crisis on Infinite Earths apart from other events of the era. It was immediately followed with the death of Barry Allen, whose grim fate was prophesied in a much earlier issue.

In spite of a premise that could've easily incorporated their quick resurrection into a newly formed DC Universe; the deaths of both Supergirl and The Flash were granted an immediate and sustained sense of consequence. Dead was dead. At least for a while.

The Flash was at least permitted to have existed within this new universe's secret history, but his death quickly became a crucial part of the modern canon. Barry Allen was part of a slightly re-tooled Justice League origin, and would be paid frequent homage through the legacy of his successor, the former Kid Flash: Wally West. This new Flash struggled to understand the details of his mentor's death, but continued to honor it. No such luck for Supergirl, though...

The initial conception for Superman in the post-Crisis DCU was one of a mythic 'Last Son of Krypton'. Kal-El's world had become abundant with derivative survivors from his dead home planet. The reboot was an opportunity to restore his status as a one-of-a-kind icon, completely excising Supergirl from his reality.

Of course, it didn't take long for the merits of a Girl of Steel to be reconsidered.

It would still take until 2004 for Superman's cousin Kara Zor-El to be reinstated into the modern post-Crisis canon, but a facsimile was created in her stead fairly quickly: a compromised version conjured from a character minted just a couple of years before the Crisis rebooted history.

Matrix was a shape-shifting "protoplasmic" lifeform engineered in a pocket universe by a heroic alternate Lex Luthor. When she was thrust into regular adventures in the new DCU, she was entangled with a Luthor who had been masquerading as his own son. Her disguise was much simpler, inventing a Supergirl for a universe that had only known Superman.

The new Supergirl proved an adequate replacement, but inherently susceptible to high levels of continual convolution. Efforts to separate her from Kryptonian history, while still patching together familiar Supergirl tropes, just made things increasingly messy. Eventually she would have to go.

The argument for keeping Superman alone in the universe is a tempting one, but over time I've come to see more merits in a DC Universe with Supergirl in it.

The modern age has become increasingly fixated with darker impulses that challenge the fundamental core of Superman as a character. Supergirl, like other derivations of Superman, offer the perfect vessels for exploring alternative perspectives of Superman's experience, without interrupting or corrupting his status as an icon of truth, justice, hope, and aspirational American ideals.

Supergirl expands the DCU and Superman's world with her own adventures and canon, while also offering the opportunity to explore a Kryptonian who is younger, more impulsive, less experienced, and at the same time more versed in Superman's lost home world, and its traditions. These details, and an innate feminine perspective, have continued to make Supergirl an interesting character in multiple mediums. I can't help but think of the current TV series - a shining example of the value of the character, and the enjoyment she can provide.

Supergirl's death fighting Anti-Monitor was a pretty epic, bad ass way for the Silver Age version of the character to go out. I love seeing her refuse to back down - again and again. Does the headband somehow make it even more bad ass? I think so. I've got a real soft spot for it. It's a little eighties aerobics, but I dig it. It's a shame it had to die, but I'm glad it wasn't permanent.

That about wraps it for 2019. It's been a long year with some great fights and I'm bushed! Make sure you check out the 2019 Feature Fight Recap to revisit and vote for the best battles of the year. This battle technically kicks off Season 2020, so make sure you stick around for more Secret Wars on Infinite Earths!

If you'd like to check out Crisis on Infinite Earths for yourself, you can get yourself a deal and support the site by checking out the Amazon purchase link provided. If you don't see it, you may need to adjust your settings.

You can find more featured fights from the DCU and Crisis by following links throughout this post, or by diving into the Secret Archive! You'll be able to monitor a complete index of battles ordered by universe, series, and issue number!

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Winner: Anti-Monitor
#350 (+240) Anti-Monitor [+1 kill]
#5 (--) Superman
#71 (-2) Supergirl
#894 (new) Doctor Light (Kimiyo Hoshi)