CARNAGE versus NEW AVENGERS

Breakout! Part Two (Marvel)
Where: New Avengers #2 When: February 2005
Why: Brian Michael Bendis How: David Finch

The Story So Far...
A sequence of violence and tragedy leads The Avengers to officially disassemble, but their absence creates a gaping hole in the heroic fabric that demands it be filled!

When Electro is hired to stage a breakout at the high-tech SHIELD prison, The Raft, he plunges the city of Manhattan into darkness, and frees eighty-seven of its most dangerous super-criminals!

Fate conspires to bring together a team of New Avengers to thwart the breakout! Former Spider-Woman Jessica Drew is on the island as an Agent of SHIELD, while Luke Cage was accompanying Daredevil in his civilian identity of blind lawyer Matt Murdock. When the breakout begins - the trio must fight for their lives as the serial killing Carnage stalks the shadowy halls beneath the island, but the deadly symbiote isn't the only one lurking in the dark...

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Luke Cage 5 (Super-Human)
Intelligence: Queen Veranke 4 (Tactician)
Speed: Daredevil 4 (Olympian)
Stamina: Luke Cage 5 (Marathoner)
Agility: Queen Veranke 4 (Gymnast)
Fighting: Daredevil 5 (Martial Artist)
Energy: Queen Veranke 3 (Explosives)
Total: Queen Veranke 26 (Metahuman)

Being trapped at close quarters with a fleet of escaping super-villains is bad enough. When one of those escapees happens to be the symbiote-wearing serial killer Carnage -- you know you're in real trouble!

The heroes are: Matt Murdock, Luke Cage, and Jessica Drew, with The Sentry.

This small group happens to be on hand when the breakout occurs. They aren't technically Avengers yet, but this experience will pull most of them into the orbit of a new team to be assembled by Captain America and Iron Man.

Blind lawyer Matt Murdock is better known as Daredevil, whose keen radar-senses, agility, and skilled martial arts mostly offer evasive tactics that might provide a useful distraction for an opponent like Carnage.

Luke Cage is the power player of the opening trio. Along with his super-human strength and durability, his unbreakable skin has proven resistant to symbiote attack, as was later seen in New Avengers #36. That means he should at least be able to tackle Carnage head-on and offer his teammates some defense.

SHIELD Agent Jessica Drew is better known as Spider-Woman, but little do the heroes realise she is in actual fact the shape-shifting Skrull Queen: Veranke! 

Like the woman she's imitating, Veranke has great strength, agility, and wall-crawling abilities comparable to Spider-Man, but has the added imitated talent of generating bio-electricity into stinging venom blasts.

We saw Iron Man use an electric charge to fend off Venom in Iron Man #302, but the symbiote was relatively undeterred. The aliens' real weakness is fire and high-powered sonics, but as we saw when Silver Surfer confronted Carnage, the intelligent symbiote also knows to fear more broad threats to its survival.

The ace in the hole - or rather, a Raft cell - is The Sentry, whose "power of a  million exploding suns" is still nebulously defined at this point, but will make light work of The Thing and Hulk a few years later.

Sentry, aka; Robert Reynolds, will need to be motivated to leave his cell and risk reviving the dark alter-ego of his powers, The Void, but once free we know he can stare down a symbiote without too much trouble. If you know anything about the character or this fight, there's a pretty good chance you know what's coming...

The Tape: New Avengers Ranking: Daredevil (#8)

What Went Down...

With a full scale riot raging across The Raft; Matthew Murdock leads his partner and protection detail deeper into the facility. He pleads with the silent occupant of a dark & lonely prison cell: "Mr. Reynolds, please, we could really use your help."

His words appear to fall on deaf ears and with danger lurking beyond them at every turn, he asks SHIELD Agent Jessica Drew to show them to the stairs.

A spark of her Spider-Woman "venom blast" helps light the darkened corridor, but not enough to alert Luke Cage or the other bewildered agents of the toothy grin lurking in the shadows behind Foggy Nelson.

Foggy's indignant concern for "insanity" catching up with them is an unfortunate irony as the serial killer Carnage steps into the light. His large extending hand and symbiote strands curl in the air around the hapless lawyer.

Murdock charges to his friend's aid while Jessica Drew fires a venom blast directly at the murderous symbiote!

Whipping tendrils miss all but the strongest of the group. Luke Cage takes a direct hit to the gut, but against his toughened skin all that tears is his shirt!

Cage does his best to grapple with darting pseudo-appendages while Carnage sets his sights on Spider-Woman and any "one" of her internal organs.

Matt Murdock rushes Foggy to the relative safety of a nearby empty cell and orders him not to open the door under any circumstances. The terrified lawyer complies, entrusting his fate to the man without fear like so many times before.

Many wild tendrils fill the dark and narrow corridor with spastic chaos, searching for any unfortunate target they might strike. Murdock is easily knocked off his feet as one of them slaps him violently.

Agent Drew warns her compatriots of the symbiote's ability to feed off the people it makes contact with. The warning appears to inspire Carnage to lunge toward the shooting guards and make "easy snacks" of them.

Carnage continues trying to pierce Luke Cage's unbreakable skin in vain, while Agent Drew blasts his back with venom blasts to no avail.

Recognizing the hopelessness of the situation, Murdock tells the Spider-Woman to grab the guards and make a run for it. He doesn't notice the hulking figure approaching behind him to make matters much worse: Mister Hyde!

Any pretense of the blind lawyer is dropped as Matt Murdock is dragged into a one-on-one battle with his old adversary, calling upon his radar-like senses and years of martial arts as Daredevil to deal with the threat.

Meanwhile, a slightly bewildered Luke Cage continues to wrestle with Carnage. 

Agent Drew, still blasting the symbiote with her bio-electric stings, informs him that the villain usually deals with Spider-Man -- a second course Carnage hopes to sample once he's finished devouring his present company. Drew moves in closer to feed the symbiote a direct venom blast down its gaping maw!

Still completely unaware of how the Raft breakout happened, or the rampage of its 87 inmates raging on the surface above; Agent Drew redirects her focus to finding an escape, and calling for much-needed reinforcements.

Her prayers are answered as Robert Reynolds steps confidently through the corridor. Imprisoned in his tattered yellow uniform, the forgotten Sentry is none the less a vision of a hero as he stands before Carnage and catches a symbiote tendril with the palm of his unflinching hand.

It is the calm before the storm as reality is bombarded with the impossible power of a million exploding suns! A barrage of explosions blast through the lower levels of The Raft and into the night sky where The Sentry soon flies!

Clouds part as The Sentry carries Carnage toward Earth's outer atmosphere and silently ends the killer's rampage!

No scream is heard as Cletus Kasady is ripped in two at the waist, and the red symbiote flitters helplessly against a backdrop of stars and a blue planet. The cold reality of defeat like Carnage has never felt before!

The Hammer...

I'm guessing the majority of people reading this were already aware of The Sentry flying to space to rip Carnage in two, but I'm not so sure everybody knows there was an entire struggle before that.

The Sentry's attack was one of the most talked about moments of 2005. It was an immediate sensation! A "meme-able" lightning rod for the otherwise visually muddy prison riot intended to deliver us to a fresh perspective on a Marvel mainstay: The New Avengers.

All these years later it's almost hard to remember it was a controversial time for what is now one of Marvel's biggest mainstream brands.

Writer Brian Bendis took a wrecking ball to the classical lineup, abruptly launching a series of deadly attacks from within and without as Avengers Disassembled.

The violent affront riled up longtime fans who were dismayed to see Avengers (Vol.1) come to an abrupt end after a forty-two year run with only one year-long interruption. The revamp was an even bigger departure than The Ultimates, which had retooled the slightly stuffy Avengers concept with edgy modern politics, and uniform seams, for the en vogue Ultimate Marvel imprint in 2002.

This was hardly the first time The Avengers had dealt with upheaval in their lineups, but unwritten rules were clearly being violated.

The knock on the New Avengers strategy was that it was "JLA-ing" the group. The addition of iconic Avengers holdouts like Spider-Man and Wolverine -- and the Superman-analogous Sentry -- contributed to the comparison. These were independently popular characters associated with other offices.

In practise the "New" relaunch wasn't quite as all-star focused as Grant Morrison's '97 Justice League, nor was it a refinement of a classic model. It was a major departure from what was broadly understood as "Avengers™".

Spider-Man had flirted with membership many times in the past, but always swung away from most groupings with Reserve status at most. He was the star of Marvel Team-Up and the centre of the Marvel Universe, but a perennial solo act at the end of the day. His change of heart comes after being mobbed by Raft escapees in the opening New Avengers issues -- a fight for another day.

Daredevil did a more convincing job staying solo by flat-out turning down Captain America's recruitment offer after Raft riot clean-up. It turns out this was an accidental bit of consistency as DD's incumbent secret identity as mystery man "Ronin" was widely guessed by fans, publicly spoiled by a news outlet, and clashed with ideas for ending Bendis' acclaimed DD run with Murdock in prison.

Slow starts were a writer trademark, but it turned out a lot of parts would be sold separately during the chaotic assembly of the New Avengers.

Extensive pre-promotion had featured art of the entire group -- including an affectionately referred to "bubble boy" that was replaced with what became the Ronin design. That made it surprising when Wolverine and Ronin didn't appear for five or more issues. Spider-Woman, it would turn out, was actually a Skrull in disguise all along, and Sentry didn't come back down to Earth until the second story arc, which focused on his formal introduction to the Marvel Universe canon.

Prior to this The Sentry had effectively existed unto himself. His secret history was told with isolated one-shots and mini-series in 2000. It was writer Paul Jenkins' millennium hoax, which supposed that the character was a forgotten creation from Marvel's classic pantheon. A sort of 'Superman with headaches', as Marvel likes to describe of its heroes, with an elaborate backstory.

Without the burden of consequence, Sentry's secret history had been able to rewrite the status quo for several heroes. He was Mister Fantastic's best friend, mentored Angel, made Hulk a beloved public figure, and got Peter Parker a Pulitzer prize for photography. All undone when knowledge of his existence was erased to avoid unleashing his dark nemesis and alter-ego: The Void.

Officially bringing the character into the on-going Marvel Universe seemed like a risky proposition to many, but also an interesting challenge. The bombastic defeat of Carnage gave him a major scalp upon entry, but the glib dismissal of a nineties hangover wasn't enough to convince everyone the idea could work.

After Civil War Sentry passed through the ranks of the registered "Mighty" Avengers, before a direction leaning into fans' disdain placed him among the villainous Dark Avengers. An epic battle in World War Hulk proved to be a rare highlight during the short run, but after just five years, his death in Siege was a widely expected foregone conclusion. A fail state brought about by a long awaited return of Thor, and short-lived shift towards a somewhat traditional Avengers.

If you'd like to experience The Sentry's re-entry into the Marvel canon, and the dawn of the New Avengers, you can check out today's featured fight in its entirety collected in New Avengers: Breakout or New Avengers by Brian Michael Bendis: The Complete Collection Volume 1.

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Winner: The Sentry (w/ Luke Cage, Jessica Drew & Matt Murdock)
#71 (+51) The Sentry
#8 (--) Daredevil [+1 assist]
#9 (--) Luke Cage [+1 assist]
#194 (+101) Queen Veranke [+1 assist]
#133 (-12) Carnage (Symbiote)
#145 (-10) Carnage (Cletus Kasady)

MIRROR MASTER & KILLER FROST versus GREEN ARROW & BLACK LIGHTNING

Heading into the Light Part Two: Cold Reflections (DC)
Where: Green Arrow #55 When: December 2005
Why: Judd Winick How: Ron Garney

The Story So Far...
Doctor Light has recovered his erased memories and is out to reestablish himself as a villainous force to be reckoned with! After failing to defeat his adversaries in the Teen Titans he's set his sights on ruining the life of Green Arrow and he has the resources of The Society to make it happen!

Green Arrow and Black Lightning are working to resolve the predicament, but when Dr. Kimiyo Hoshi is hospitalized, they find themselves ambushed by the second stage of Light's scheme: Mirror Master and Killer Frost!

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Killer Frost 3 (Athlete)
Intelligence: Killer Frost 5 (Professor)
Speed: Black Lightning 3 (Athlete)
Stamina: Black Lightning 4 (Athlete)
Agility: Green Arrow 3 (Acrobat)
Fighting: Green Arrow 5 (Martial Artist)
Energy: Black Lightning 5 (Lasers)
Total: Draw 24 (Champion)

Mirror Master and Killer Frost might seem like an unusual team-up, but they've been recruited by Doctor Light through his affiliation with The Society. The secret cabal is an organized union of super-villains working together for mutual goals.

This is the Evan McCulloch incarnation of Mirror Master: a mercenary who was given Sam Scudder's old gear by the FBI to work covert operations. He quickly turned on the feds and went mercenary, becoming a regular foe for The Flash.

His predecessor's advanced technology grants access to a mirror dimension he can travel through using any reflective surface. Mirror Master can also trap people in breakable mirrors, and create convincing illusions and duplicates of himself.

Killer Frost is identified in this issue as Dr. Crystal Frost, but all accounts before and since confirm her earlier death. It's much more likely that this is Dr. Louise Lincoln, who recreated the accident that transformed Dr. Frost, as a means of avenging her death as the second Killer Frost.

We saw her employ her heat absorption and ice powers while battling Kyle Rayner in Green Lantern #127. She was taken down by Wonder Woman during a clash with the Injustice League in Justice League of America #13.

We saw Mirror Master combine his powers with Doctor Light to take down The League of Titans in Final Crisis #1. Killer Frost's ice should create interesting potential for collaboration with his mirror powers.

Green Arrow and Black Lightning are more experienced fighting partners and will need to use that to their tactical advantage.

GA's arrows have taken down everyone from the gimmick wielding Penguin in Justice League of America #135, to the supreme fighter Deathstroke in Green Arrow #62. Black Lightning's electrical charge will prove valuable in evening the score against super-powers, but there is a question over whether or not he can za Killer Frost -- or will generate the type of heat she likes to consume.

The Tape: Green Arrow & Black Lightning Ranking: Green Arrow (#20)

What Went Down...

Green Arrow takes a knee and draws an arrow in the direction of the freshly made hole in the side of Kimiyo Hoshi's hospital room. Her bandaged body lies helpless on the ground courtesy of Killer Frost and Mirror Master's explosive entrance!

Crawling on hands and knees, Black Lightning shakes off the impact and answers GA's request to clear the room. He unleashes an electric blast that launches the villains into the night sky -- sending them hurtling across the city!

Killer Frost crash lands hard into the street some six blocks away, but Mirror Master walks away without a scratch. She can hardly believe his luck when an arrow stakes itself into the ground at his feet. Mirror Master knows better.

He runs as fast as he can from the arrow as a red light starts to gleam and it emits a high pitched shriek. A nearby car window provides a parked portal clear from danger as the arrow explodes -- again sending Killer Frost wildly airborne!

Green Arrow reads the play, recognizing Mirror Master is the more savvy of the pair while he shields from the blast behind another parked car.

The illusion of protection is shattered when Mirror Master's hand extends from the car's window and grabs Green Arrow by the throat!

GA deals with the problem at its source -- violently throwing his elbow into the glass to shatter Mirror Master's portal!

He staggers backward into the street, drawing his bow in the direction of the attack. He falls back, but lands close to a puddle with Mirror Master lying in wait!

Hands once again extend impossibly from the two-dimensional plane, locking Green Arrow in an unanticipated choke hold!

It looks as if it's about to get a whole lot worse when Killer Frost recovers from the explosion and prepares to join in -- but Black Lightning calls her attention to an elemental face-off from a building ledge overhead!

Frost gladly answers the challenge -- unleashing a stream of bitter cold that engulfs Black Lightning and lifts him off the ledge!

She leaps into the air to make chase. Lightning cautiously fires off a bolt, but it fails to connect as Frost splits her legs and dodges it. She joins him on a rooftop and sends icy shards extending across. He has no choice but to jump!

Meanwhile on the street, Green Arrow does his best to dive clear of a volley of shots fired by Mirror Master's gun. He dives behind a car and pulls another arrow, but finds himself surrounded by an army of mirror clones!

Green Arrow slings arrows at record speed, shattering the duplicates while deducing that Mirror Master is more than likely playing with him.

The villain expresses his admiration for his opponent's feats while emerging from the reflection on a shattered piece of glass on the hood of GA's cover. Arrow grabs his pop-up attacker by the wrists and slams his forehead into a waiting nose!

The vicious blow prompts Mirror Master to drop to his knees and clutch his busted nose. Green Arrow uses the opportunity to run from a foe he can't beat, hoping to change the playing field by jacking a nearby jeep and making an exit.

A short drive away: Killer Frost blasts unrelenting cold in an effort to see if there's a temperature that will freeze electricity. It's all Black Lightning can do just to keep the cold at bay with his gleaming bolts.

The cavalry arrives in a stolen chariot, leaning out of the driver's side window to fire off an arrow that hits Killer Frost in the shoulder!

GA drives right through the battle zone, calling for a partner switch that Black Lightning is all too happy to take! He rockets towards Mirror Master on bolts of electricity -- finding himself suddenly surrounded by reflections on all sides!

Black Lightning flips through the air, avoiding a spray of Mirror Master's mirrored gunfire. He lands on one knee and returns fire -- unleashing a deadly charge that fills the empty street with a leaping field of electricity!

Knowing Mirror Master could slip through any tiny shard of reflective glass, he pushes himself to the maximum to cut off any angle of entry. Smoke fills the street as he finally relents, but just like GA, he overlooked the puddle between his feet with a grinning face and a hi-tech pistol slowly emerging.

Mirror Master's jibes give him away, allowing Black Lightning to unleash one final mighty charge that evaporates the puddle and leaves his opponent unconscious!

A few streets away its a scene of absolute winter as snow blasts through cold winds. The gale makes it impossible to fire arrows toward the source, so GA tries a different tact, aiming for a street light.

Killer Frost gleefully deflects the heavy metal pole with a focused blast of ice, but the distraction serves well enough to ease the cold front and allow Green Arrow one shot with a very special arrow.

It ignites as it strikes Killer Frost in the thigh. At first, she laughs at the feeble attempt to fire ice with fire, but this arrow is different. It was cooked up by Roy Harper. It's called "Greek Fire" -- a chemical batch that burns hotter in water!

The emerald archer has an arrow capable of neutralizing the flame, but he holds it back -- interrogating Killer Frost for the identity of who sent her. She writhes in agony in the flame, screaming the man's name: Dr. Light!

The Hammer...

Pretty brutal tactics on Green Arrow's part, but it gets a result.

Killer Frost gives up that she and Mirror Master were sent by Doctor Light with intent to keep the hero busy, and away from home, while Light is stalking his adopted daughter Mia Dearden.

Green Arrow is specifically targeted for his role in unraveling a plot against Light's old enemies: the Teen Titans, but it's all in the name of revenge for the indignity Light suffered when the Justice League erased part of his mind.

Green Arrow was actually one of the heroes who stood opposed to using magic to rewire Doctor Light's personality in flashback portions of Identity Crisis. The decision was determined by the majority votes of Hawkman, Zatanna, Atom, and The Flash. They were opposed by Green Arrow, Black Canary, and Green Lantern.

Black Lightning had nothing to do with the League at that time, or their dark dirty secret history. It probably would've occurred just before he established a friendship with Green Arrow, and received nomination for membership in Justice League of America #173. Readers of the recent and excellent Other History of the DC Universe will know he turned their offer down in the 1979 issue.

It wasn't until 2007 that Black Lightning finally relented and officially joined the ranks of the Justice League. We got to see him in action against Cheetah and the Injustice League shortly after. Fun, but it feels like all the classic hold-outs have been swept up in a tidal wave of everybody young 'n' old joining the big teams.

I kinda like Black Lightning doing his own thing, and having a more special kinship with Green Arrow. It certainly added to an already stacked period for GA!

This arc in particular packs a punch with significant post-Identity Crisis follow-ups with Doctor Light, a couple of appearances by Kimiyo Hoshi in a super-charged grudge match, as well as the usual Arrow family, and The Society's guest villains!

The battle against Mirror Master & Killer Frost essentially occupies the entirety of the issue and it's a pretty good, uncomplicated time.

It's always fun to see what happens when villains cross brands to test themselves against other iconic heroes. Mirror Master might cook up new ways to cause trouble for The Flash, but it's a whole new ball game when he goes after Green Arrow or Black Lightning.

That said, it doesn't quite feel like the unique chemistry is fully exploited in this one. It's kind of taken for granted that the good guys are winning on their way to bigger fish. The focus seems to be on the end result of their fight, rather than the scrimmage, which leaves some of the middle action a little hazy.

Black Lightning's method for flash-frying Mirror Master while he's coming out of a puddle is pretty ingenious. Taking Killer Frost down with a chemical fire is a little less inspired, given her penchant for absorbing heat. Credit to Judd Winick for pulling "Greek fire" out of real historic Middle Ages reference, and acknowledging that its property for burning in water makes it a unique weapon.

I'm not sure who's responsible for misidentifying Killer Frost by the alias of the deceased Crystal Frost. That one seems like it could be an editorial oversight compounded by DC's gradual restoration of pre-Crisis elements in the mid-2000s.

All references before and after, including Crystal Frost's brief return as a pseudo-zombie during Blackest Night, seem to confirm this should be taken as Louise Lincoln. You'd think DC would learn from this kind of confusion, but alas, we seem doomed to repeat these inconsistencies as they instate reboot after reboot.

The artwork is a little inconsistent on this one, but when Ron Garney gets a clean hit, it's a thing of beauty. He particularly seems to excel at drawing Green Arrow and Black Lightning. Inker Bill Reinhold compliments the detail in their faces with strong, black lines that seem to retain a soft, bendiness from the pencils.

I like the sharp detailing in that panel of Killer Frost pouring on the cold against Black Lightning, too. At other times the actions and rendering gets much less sharp, and reminds me of some of the incomplete looking treatment of Scott McDaniel when he isn't at his best. I don't know if there's an uncredited assist here, or if it's just coincidence he's a regular GA penciller around this time.

If you'd like to find more from Green Arrow or any of the subjects covered in this post you should check out the links throughout. Or dive into the Secret Archive for a complete index of every featured fight in order of publisher, series, and issue!

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Winners: Black Lightning & Green Arrow
#17 (+3) Green Arrow
#66 (+41) Black Lightning
#363 (-114) Mirror Master (Evan McCulloch)
#978 (-19) Killer Frost (Louise Lincoln)

MAXWELL LORD & SUPERMAN versus WONDER WOMAN

Sacrifice Part 4 of 4 (DC)
Where: Wonder Woman #219 When: September 2005 Why: Greg Rucka How: Rags Morales, David Lopez, Tom Derenick, Georges Jeanty & Karl Kerschl

The Story So Far...
The exploitation of magic to rewrite a villain's personality began a cover-up within the Justice League that unraveled with the murder of Sue Dibny. Remembering his own mind was altered -- Batman created a stealth-concealed satellite to monitor the League and their actions in secret.

Discovered by Maxwell Lord; the Brother Eye satellite becomes a tool for a new incarnation of the covert intelligence organization Checkmate. As their Black King, Lord exploits the technology to initiate the OMAC Project and prepare for a war against super-powers.

Not content with relying on technology alone, Lord also uses his powers of mind control to turn Superman into his ultimate weapon. With the truth exposed by mental probe: Wonder Woman heads to Checkmate headquarters to confront the source of the visions that have turned Superman against the League!

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Draw 6 (Invincible)
Intelligence: Draw 4 (Tactician)
Speed: Superman 6 (Mach Speed)
Stamina: Superman 6 (Generator)
Agility: Superman 3 (Acrobat)
Fighting: Wonder Woman 6 (Warrior)
Energy: Superman 5 (Lasers)
Total: Superman 33 (Super)

Throughout much of the modern age Superman and Wonder Woman have been shown to be approximate equals. They share in similar degrees of elevated strength, durability, stamina, speed, and even flight. So what separates them?

We're catching Wonder Woman at a time when her Amazon heritage appears to be manifesting itself through harsh justice. We observed this with a bloody follow-up issue that saw Cheetah invading The Haguge in Wonder Woman #222.

Wonder Woman's warrior training arguably makes her a more technically proficient fighter than Superman, who usually has the luxury of relying on strength and invulnerability. She demonstrated this fighting off both Vixen and Fleur-de-Lis simultaneously in JLA: Classified #3.

Although incredibly strong, Wonder Woman doesn't always hit the same peaks as Superman. In Crisis on Infinite Earths #6 the Earth-One Wonder Woman struggled to tame Mary Marvel with her lasso of truth. She fared only slightly better in Final Crisis #3, losing a one-on-one struggle. Captain Marvel was also able to endure a corrupted Wonder Woman in Underworld Unleashed #3.

Superman has had his own struggles with the powers of SHAZAM.  Captain Marvel took him to the limit in Action Comics Annual #4, Superman/Batman #4, and Superman #216. A similar standstill occurred when Black Adam kept Superman to a tactical draw in DC Comics Presents #49,

Both Superman and Wonder Woman have faced the magical strength of Marvel's Juggernaut and passed with flying colours. Superman kayoed him with a sucker punch in DC versus Marvel #1, while Wonder Woman earned a more substantial win in a tag team slobberknocker with Spider-Man in Unlimited Access #1!

Superman is fighting today under the mental influence of Maxwell Lord which could be a key factor. Breaking the chemical influence of Poison Ivy was vital to Batman & Catwoman defeating him in Batman #612.

The tyrant Superman of Superman/Batman #15 showed he has the strength and speed to brutalize Wonder Woman if given the inclination. Infinite Crisis #1 showed a more reasonable disagreement. If the Lasso of Truth can overcome Max Lord's programming Wonder Woman should win.

History: 1-0-0 (Superman)
The Tape: Superman Ranking: Superman (#5)

What Went Down...

Max Lord stands gloating as The Man of Steel holds Wonder Woman to one knee with a hand around her throat. Superman is completely under his mental control.

A trickle of blood from Lord's nose is the only hint of strain dominating the world's most powerful man. He asks Superman to let her go, supremely confident that she won't attack. He tries to reach into her mind too, but cannot. She sees with the comprehension of a god. Lord's projections will not cloud her truth.

Words become Wonder Woman's weapon as the seasoned ambassador attempts to engage Lord in discussion. He recognizes her skill before revealing the entirety of his plans. Threatened, he strikes, summoning his most powerful weapon from the torment of visions of Doomsday murdering his beloved wife: Lois Lane.

Like a speeding bullet Superman darts toward them -- leading with laser focused bursts of heat vision.

Wonder Woman scrambles to throw her hands up, just barely deflecting the blasts with her magic bracelets. It is a short-lived defense as Superman is suddenly upon her, clutching her throat as he jets them out of the building.

Bereaved by telepathic visions of Lois Lane's death he screams her name. He's holding nothing back, rocketing out of Earth's atmosphere on an unknown journey with what he believes to be Doomsday.

Searing beams of heat vision find their target immediately, burning at the bones beneath Wonder Woman's cheek.

She cannot escape. Held mere inches from Superman's blazing red eyes by an unshakable choke hold. All she can do is plunge her thumbs into his eyes to try to stop the flow. Even as she does, heat begins to engulf them as they near the sun.

Superman tries to turn away, heat vision streaking around him as it bends to their incredible momentum. A moment of separation is all Wonder Woman needs to reach into her belt and retrieve the kryptonite she was given by Batman!

She thrusts it forward, but even in his confused state Superman knows the risks of exposure. He swings with all his might, hitting Wonder Woman so hard she blacks out for an instant!

Careening through space the Amazon begins to stir as the friction of her body re-entering Earth's atmosphere causes her to burn. Too late to do anything about it as gravity ushers her back to the planet with an all mighty explosion on impact!

An interstate highway in Wyoming is reduced to a massive crater. Superman hovers over it as a dazed Wonder Woman attempts to talk him down.

All Superman can see is the unstoppable monster he thinks murdered Lois. He vows to stop it, freezing his target in place with a powerful gust of exhaling.

Superman hoists a massive chunk of Earth over his head and moves in to crush his intended target. Only Wonder Woman has escaped the ice, quickly darting completely out of sight.

She waits in silence for the Man of Steel to stop talking and start listening intently with super-human accuracy. Once he does, she lingers behind him with arms out stretched. A plot to turn his incredible power into a devastating weakness!

The sound of Wonder Woman slamming her enchanted bracelets against Superman's sensitive ears is agony!

He grabs his ears as as the thundering sound echoes within and a tiny trickle of blood spurts from them both. Wonder Woman wants to hold back, but she must seize her chance.

The Amazon warrior kicks Superman in the side of the head, then buries her heel in his left knee. A snapping right hook catches him, sending his head falling hard into the ground. A combination designed to buy the time to reach for her lasso!

The gambit shows far more finesse than anything Doomsday would be capable of, but Superman suddenly seems remarkably focused on stopping the lasso.

He closes in at speed, forcing Wonder Woman to dedicate her arms to defending simultaneous incoming strikes from either side. Another blast of heat vision forces Wonder Woman to move, the two of them dancing around each other with the Lasso of Truth coiled just out of reach of snaring its subject.

Superman grabs Wonder Woman's lassoing right wrist. She retaliates with a rising palm thrust of her free hand. It catches Superman's steely chin, but he doesn't break his grip. He just squeezes and bends the wrist tighter. Then snaps it!

Wonder Woman lets out a scream. She wonders what new visions must be driving this precision attack. She realises that Maxwell Lord is the real threat.

She ducks a haymaker, supporting her injured wrist. Then charges at Superman, narrowly avoiding his heat vision to deliver a kick that sends him hurtling across the landscape!

Shifting a bracelet provides support for her broken wrist. A call to nature summons a flock of birds to provide her cover. A distraction easily dealt with by a vortex of air created by flying in circles, but enough to allow her to escape.

The Amazon returns to Checkmate's castle headquarters to confront Max Lord head-on. She easily ensnares him in her golden lasso and hoists him off the ground by the neck. As she does: Superman returns. A problem soon remedied.

With a rapid swing Wonder Woman tosses the tiara from her head like a discus -- sending it perfectly hurtling across Superman's jugular!

Shocked, the Man of Steel wraps a hand around his own throat and applies pressure to stem the flow of blood. He suddenly sees his opponent for who she really is as Wonder Woman convinces Lord to release his control.

Superman sifts through his reality as if waking from a nightmare. He holds his wound, coming to grips with the horrors he had witnessed. Illusions cast by the man Wonder Woman now has at her complete mercy...

She asks Lord how to permanently free Superman from his hideous influence. She takes him at his word. With a hand on his chin and head she twists -- snapping his neck and severing his spinal column. With that Maxwell Lord is dead.

The Hammer...
Heading into this one I thought there might be two fights to review, but upon revisiting Wonder Woman #219, it's clear there is one. Superman was a tool for the real villain Maxwell Lord. In the end: Wonder Woman defeated them both.

Max Lord's conspiracy against superheroes recalls his earlier history as a pawn of the hostile artificial intelligence Killg%re. Its plot was behind his efforts to establish a new Justice League corporation in the wake of Legends, which included the willful manipulation of the original line-up of heroes.

The corporate shark gained mind-control powers from a gene bomb detonated by The Dominators during Invasion. His time with the Justice League only saw limited exposure to Superman, but he was never the less able to gather sufficient intelligence to exploit The Man of Steel with just the right mental suggestions.

The decision to fatally snap Maxwell Lord's neck proved a pivotal step in defining Wonder Woman for the remainder of the 2000s and beyond.

There have been many defining moments in the character's history, but the sense that there was no enduring definitive reference remained a pervasive issue for her modern post-Crisis incarnation.

Who really is Wonder Woman? What sets her apart from equivalents in the DC pantheon? Her status seemingly relied on image: Lynda Carter in live-action, and the comics drawn by George Perez. This impression, true or not, invited writers to extract answers in the most logical place: her mythic Amazonian origins.

There's no ambiguity in the final page of Wonder Woman #219. She asks Max how to stop the visions that haunt Superman enacting violence against innocents. She doesn't hesitate in the slightest to act upon his lethal answer. She simply stares Lord down and twists his head.

It was a further parting of the ways for the DC trinity through their approaches to heroics. I tried to define this as part of my "Totem of Justice" around the time, where Superman was the hero of higher ideals; Batman was militaristic force in kind; and Wonder Woman the "life for a life" level of justice by warrior's code.

It's interesting that Zack Snyder featured a similar scenario in his Man of Steel film, recasting Superman as the neck-snapping protagonist - rather than the somewhat hapless, reluctant witness he is in today's battle.

Both examples appear to address misplaced internet-age criticisms of Superman's moral integrity, and his vast power to live up to it.

Snyder takes the increasingly popular cynical approach, bringing Superman down to "our" level by corrupting him and the use of his powers. Sequels doubled down on tropes of both a tyrannical "evil" Superman, and a weak Superman, specifically reprising the Death of Superman in only his second cinematic outing.

These are fundamental betrayals of the Superman character, but Wonder Woman has always walked a fine line of contradiction between an "ambassador for peace" and Amazon warrior princess. Her brutality under extreme circumstance appears measured, and in some ways feels like an enhancement of her heritage, rather than a betrayal of it.

Wonder Woman #222 requires Diana to answer for her actions, while also further establishing her tendency towards a warrior's resolution.

It's a tricky balance, but it seems relatively well struck by Greg Rucka and his collaborators, with some small debt to earlier runs that explored her heritage.

Further mitigating Wonder Woman's culpability for the death of Max Lord, at least in the eyes of the reader, is the impression that Superman was the stronger of the two. He'd already beaten up Batman and the Justice League, by this point. Left unchecked, who knows what he would've done under Max Lord's influence.

If you came here to see which icon is strongest, you could walk away with mixed impressions. Although Wonder Woman ultimately won through grit and redirected guile, it was clear Superman controlled most of the fight. Circumstances had it that he wasn't holding back the way the rational Wonder Woman might've been, but it also seems about right that he is the more powerful of the two.

That said, I'm not entirely sure how to read Wonder Woman's finishing blow.

It could be taken that the earlier introduction of kryptonite, though brief, was enough to soften Superman enough to pierce his skin.

I find that preferable to any alternative that might imply magical origins of Wonder Woman's tiara somehow allowed it to cut him. As I've said many times, I don't subscribe to the theory that magic is a "weakness". Just a vulnerability subject to the logic of spells that exist to circumvent our conventional reality -- the reality by which Superman is conceptually determined to be exceptional.

If you'd like to make your own assessments about this reality you can find the battle collected in both Superman: Sacrifice and Wonder Woman by Greg Rucka Volume 3: War in Paradise.

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Winner: Wonder Woman
#11 (+2) Wonder Woman
#5 (--) Superman
#937 (new) Maxwell Lord

SUPERGIRL versus LEX LUTHOR

Power Chapter Three: Outsiders (DC)
Where: Supergirl #3 When: December 2005
Why: Jeph Loeb How: Ian Churchill

The Story So Far...
Kara Zor-El was a teenager when the planet Krypton was destroyed, but when her father sent her rocketing towards the planet Earth, she was waylaid -- arriving decades after her cousin had established himself as the last surviving son of Krypton and Earth's greatest protector: Superman!

Granted the same powers by Earth's yellow sun, she adopts the identity of Supergirl and embarks on a quest to become accustomed with her adopted home world. Batman, The Justice Society, and Teen Titans help to prepare her for the challenges ahead, but the brash young hero still has much to learn as she races to confront the watchful eye of Lex Luthor!

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Supergirl 6 (Invincible)
Intelligence: Lex Luthor 6 (Genius)
Speed: Supergirl 5 (Super-Human)
Stamina: Supergirl 5 (Marathoner)
Agility: Supergirl 4 (Gymnast)
Fighting: Supergirl 3 (Street Wise)
Energy: Supergirl 5 (Lasers)
Total: Supergirl 30 (Super)

We've seen Supergirl face some heavy duty opponents, but today might just represent her biggest test! Few foes could be quite so motivated to do harm as the notorious Lex Luthor -- arch-nemesis of her Kryptonian cousin: Superman!

Lex Luthor is famous for his scientific brilliance and cerebral approach to battling enemies. He's as likely to manipulate a network of pawns and circumstances as he is to fight an enemy head-on. More's the better to get away scot-free!

His technological genius and financial might means he can build just about any weapon needed to level the playing field. His most famous invention is a green & purple power suit, seen being destroyed by Superman uncharacteristically easily in Justice League of America #15. It's rarely so simple!

Lex is motivated by a well-known hatred for Superman, but that obsession has also fuelled malice toward other heroes, as well. We saw him use artificially induced superpowers to torture Steel during 52 #42!

He also joined Libra and The Society during a murderous ambush of the Martian Manhunter in Final Crisis: Requiem #1. The Martian was defeated by fire-wielding members of the group, but gave them all a run for their money, using telepathy against them, including preying upon Luthor's fear of Superman.

When Supergirl fought Martian Manhunter back in Adventure Comics #450, he was disoriented, and favoured a more physical contest. Never the less, she managed to go toe-to-toe with the senior hero, before they called a truce.

She wasn't so lucky when facing Reactron and his radioactive StarSuit in The Daring New Adventures of Supergirl #9. She'd matched the nuclear-powered villain blow for blow until a poorly considered plan literally blew up in her face! You don't get away with those kinds of slip-ups against a foe like Luthor!

We know Supergirl has the strength and will to fight Lex Luthor. Her battles with the Marvel Family in Crisis on Infinite Earths #6 and Final Crisis #6 show that! It's just a question of whether her inexperience will allow Luthor the opportunity he needs to steal victory through any means necessary! Lets find out.

The Tape: Supergirl Ranking: Supergirl (#72)

What Went Down...
A wafting plume of blue breaks the monotony of endless red desert. Smoldering energy - emanating from the gauntlet of a lone armored figure: Lex Luthor!

Supergirl swoops down to confront the villain and is immediately introduced to his deadliest weapon! Kryptonite radiation spews from his closed fist, bathing the Girl of Steel in its power sapping properties!

Immediately suffering its effects - Supergirl careens  toward the earth with a devastating crash! Her body smashes into the rocky surface at Luthor's feet and the young heroine considers that she could be in way over her head!

As she crawls from the impact crater, Supergirl thinks of her cousin -- but quickly shakes those thoughts from her mind, even as Luthor clutches her throat in his metallic gauntlet.

The villain hoists his victim with arm outstretched, holding her with the sky at her back. He speaks spitefully, of her extra-terrestrial origins and a prophecy of his downfall foretold by Darkseid. He wonders where Darkseid has gone - accusing Superman of some murderous rendezvous beyond the eyes of Earth.

Luthor's bitter accusations inspire retaliation! Supergirl breaks the hold with a hovering kick and unloads with heat vision!

Cold and calculating, Luthor calls upon deflective defenses design to handle the same blasts offered by Superman. He verbally prods at the insult while firing back with the deflective force shield. It knocks the Girl of Steel back!

Barely able to stand, Supergirl is held up by the length of her hair while Luthor reminisces over past glories of metropolitan industry and presidential power. Supergirl can't help but think of her cousin's battle with Doomsday as Lex busts her lip with a thuggish punch to the face!

The villain speaks distantly of the way striking a girl reduces him, as if he wasn't a hooligan deep down. He buries his reinforced fist into Supergirl's abdomen with a vile punch, then breaks her nose with a back-handed fist.

Blood sprays from the weakened Kryptonian, all too mortal. All too similar to the pictures she'd seen of Superman's loss to Doomsday. Luthor justifies his attack with the symbol Supergirl wears and delivers an uppercut.

The once brash Supergirl now considers her own mortality as she lies in the dirt.

Luthor's twisted justifications turn to the "blackness" within everyone. The "sins of flesh and power" Superman supposedly denies. A poetic flourish for the final affront: a point blank beam of black kryptonite radiation!

Supergirl feebly pleads for the villain to stop. He only delights at her suffering.

Yet, for all his brilliance, and all his preparation -- Lex Luthor has failed to consider the consequence of his actions. The effects of black kryptonite prove completely unforeseen, spawning the very dark spirit he so vividly imagined!

At first, the black clad Supergirl emerging from Kara Zor-El's beaten body speaks in alien tongues. Then, as Luthor scowls unimpressed, her words turn to English, and he learns of his folly. He just made the worst mistake of his life!

The Hammer...
Woof. I can't say I took a lot of pleasure in describing that one! We've had some one-sided battles over the years, and a lot of villains finding success recently, but nothing quite so brutal! That was downright uncomfortable!

The nearest comparison that comes to mind is Superman/Batman #15: another Jeph Loeb script from 2005, drawn by Carlos Pacheco, depicting the impaling of an alternate universe Batman, and freedom fighting Wonder Woman bruised and choked with her own lasso by a tyrannical Superman.

I wouldn't like to speculate about Loeb's writing process during what was a well publicized difficult time in his personal life. That would be overlooking the fact that the mid-2000s were a generally brutal period in DC Comics.

Some have tended to see Geoff Johns as the lead purveyor of violence around this time. He certainly roughed up Green Arrow and Kyle Rayner during the big return of Sinestro in Green Lantern: Rebirth #4. The bad guys were winning in Infinite Crisis #1 as well, savagely cutting down the Freedom Fighters.

Meanwhile, Loeb's despot Superman also claimed the life of Green Arrow in the first issue of Absolute Power, while the mainline Man of Steel was indulging in light heat vision knee-capping in the controversial pages of Action Comics #824.

To their credit: these depictions of Superman were still regarded as exceptions brought about by unusual circumstance. This certainly wasn't the relentless and fundamentally flawed Superman of Zack Snyder's miserable movie universe.

American geo-politics of the time obviously had some influence. The United States bared its fangs in the wake of the 9/11 tragedy. There was a clear shift in attitude, but the delivery of violence was seeded well before the abstract "War on Terror" upped the stakes of brutality in popular culture.

The style-clash of grim 'n' gritty and xtreme comics popular in the early nineties had familiar moments of blood and guts, but were predominantly frivolous fun & games. Examples like Adventures of Superman #464 show the transposing of surface elements of Dark Knight Returns into less weighty monthly issues.

Curiously enough, the bombastic hyper-violence of the nineties was largely tossed aside at the turn of the millennium: rejected in favour of deeper, darker stories, heavy weight written-driven concepts and concerned characterization.

In shifting towards the stakes of high consequence and long-form storytelling, comics began to focus on the credibility of its villains. Single issue episodes became more scarce as villainous plots were sustained "for the trade" over lengthier period of time. Evil was no longer set up to immediately fail, with the unforeseen consequence that extreme violence would become normal.

Lex Luthor is an interesting study over this period. Here in Supergirl #3 we see him reach an apex of extreme brutality, but for much of the preceding decades he was a villain who didn't get his own hands too dirty. This is an extension of efforts in the eighties and nineties to refine Luthor into a credible adversary removed from the oafish arch-villain of Super Friends or Hostess ads.

To get him here, Luthor became the great evil of our times: a xenophobic, self-invested businessman who put aside mad science to use clout and resources to achieve his ends. He was motivated by hatred for Superman, and an unending lust for wealth and power, which culminated in his successful bid to become President of the United States in another story written by Jeph Loeb.

This all may sound like contemporary commentary, but Luthor's tenure as 43rd President lasted roughly one term in real-time, beginning at the tail end of 2000, and at last unravelling in 2004 with his exposure as a dangerous and corrupt super-villain, and inevitable removal from office. Thus, the return of the green & purple power suit, and a freedom to

The cheap stunts and routine murder of annual event comics have maintained a bloody viciousness that DC Comics has struggled to move on from. The violent credibility of villains - a catalyst for more violent heroes. This cycle: the thesis for 1996's prophetic warning Kingdom Come, and the present day proliferation of evil Superman stories, and moral fluidity in heroes & villains. Dark times.

If you'd like to experience some of this violence first hand, or see the role it played in the belated reintroduction of Supergirl into the post-Crisis DC Universe -- you can find today's featured fight collected in Supergirl Vol.1: The Girl of Steel.

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If you're a little bit more heroic than Lex and you like what we do here, you can support the site on Patreon. As a special thank you for your generosity you'll unlock various bonuses including poll options, extra updates, custom articles, and my sincerest thanks.

Secret Wars on Infinite Earths has featured well over 650 battles and ranked more than 950 characters! You can discover more by following links throughout each post, or by diving into the Secret Archive for a complete index ordered by publisher, series, and issue number. Or follow on Twitter and Facebook for daily links to smackdown inspired by the topics of the day. Be sure to like & share!

Winner: Lex Luthor
#134 (+271) Lex Luthor
#78 (-6) Supergirl