LOBO versus SUPERMAN

Blood Brawl (DC)
Where: Adventures of Superman #464 When: March 1990 Why: Dan Jurgens How: Dan Jurgens & Art Thibert

The Story So Far...
Superman's gladiatorial exploits on Warworld have spread the legend of his strength across the galaxy! As fallen champion Draaga embarks upon a determined quest for redemption; prospects of a main event rematch have space pundits placing their bets across the universe -- inviting unlikely new contenders!

Talk of Superman's reputation proved a professional and personal insult to the bar crawling mercenary: Lobo! Now the Main Man is headed to Earth to prove he's the best there is at what he does by killing The Man of Steel! Tracking Superman to the South Pole, Lobo and his drunken buddies are crashing The Fortress of Solitude for a fight to the death!

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Draw 6 (Invincible)
Intelligence: Superman 4 (Tactician)
Speed: Superman 6 (Mach-Speed)
Stamina: Lobo 7 (Unstoppable)
Agility: Superman 3 (Acrobat)
Fighting: Lobo 6 (Warrior)
Energy: Superman 5 (Lasers)
Total: Superman 33 (Super)

For the first time in all the galaxies! Unstoppable force meets immovable object for the ultimate battle of intergalactic super-powered survivors!

Lobo isn't just the last survivor of the planet Czarnia -- he's responsible for its genocide! Born with a lust for violence unseen by the peace-loving Czarnians; Lobo notoriously unleashed a species of flying scorpion that hunted all the defenseless population to extinction - bar himself!

Lobo's name is said to mean "he who devours your entrails and thoroughly enjoy[s] it" in the Khund dialect. These gratuitously destructive urges are facilitated by super-human strength and durability, as well as a capacity to endure, or heal from, severe injury. These powers can sometimes be inconsistent in their depiction. He inflicts punishment on others with an arsenal including guns, a titanium chain, and his space motorcycle.

Lobo's reputation for toughness fuelled controversy when he was defeated by Wolverine in Marvel versus DC #3! The exact details of how he was bested remain foggy, but we can assume Wolverine's accelerated healing factor helped him endure Lobo's vicious offense. That could be the biggest obstacle he faces in his first attempt to snuff out the indomitable spirit of Superman!

The last son of Krypton gains high-level super-human strength, speed, stamina, and durability as he's nourished by Earth's yellow sun. That said, he's not undefeatable! In Action Comics #586, New God Orion showed Superman can be beaten into submission with brute force, albeit on the distant planet Apokolips.

Another ultra-violent 90s anti-hero, Venom, was able to upset Superman during their preliminary crossover in DC/Marvel: All Access #1. No defeat of Superman was more famous in the nineties than Doomsday's, with their initial encounter seeing the Justice League sharing defeat, in Superman #74.

There's no doubt Lobo has the strength to equal Venom's feat of frustrating the Man of Steel, but achieving anything more permanent than temporary victory is highly questionable. On Earth, Superman has the home advantage, and even though Lobo will fight dirty, Supes isn't above getting gritty when he has to.

The Tape: Superman Ranking: Superman (#5)

What Went Down...
Having received a vision of intruders in the Fortress of Solitude: Superman arrives to order their exit! Drunk and unimpressed; Lobo can't help but rise to a challenge, subverting Superman's boasts for a speedy knock-out at the first sign of a punch. Instead of pulling his arm back -- Lobo delivers a sudden kick!

His patience wearing thin -- Superman recovers to his feet and orders Lobo out of the Fortress with a charging uppercut adding authority!

The Man of Steel snatches Lobo by the collar and lifts him into the air. He makes the mistake of presuming he's proven his toughness and the unlikelihood that Lobo will succeed in killing him. Words that only provoke the mercenary!

The Czarnian uses his legs to kick out and reverses the hold, turning it from a one-handed choke into a side headlock. Superman dismisses Lobo's boastful credentials as Darkseid's first-choice assassin, earning a vicious pummeling!

A rapid-fire barrage of punches smash into Superman's face! Even he can't react to counter act the speed and strength of Lobo -- helpless as the mercenary moves to repeatedly ramming him head-first into his own Fortress!

At last the wall gives out, burying the enduring fighters in debris! The ceiling collapse is a much needed reprieve for Superman, who manages to slip away in the cloud of dust and rubble. Short-lived -- as Lobo soon emerges to take a swig of Okaran berry juice and continue his drunken search for supremacy.

It doesn't take long for Lobo and his cohorts to catch up with Superman, waiting in a Kryptonian holograph room. The Man of Steel baits his charging opponent, who runs headlong into a camouflaged wall simulating wide-open landscape!

Inebriated, Lobo feebly contemplates his dulled senses. He's soon set upon by Superman, who smashes the re-motivated Czarnian through the floor into a lower level of simulation! There, the Man of Steel presses his advantage, slugging Lobo with a devastating right hand in a mock Kryptonian gathering!

Supes trash talks his drunk opponent, questioning Lobo's intelligence - even before he tries to drink from a holographic fountain.

Seeking a slice of reality and the means to turn the tables back in his favour -- Lobo rips up the very floor beneath his feet! Superman dodges the resulting sheet of techno-wreckage - and fires back with a blast of heat vision!

Unfortunately, extreme heat has no effect on the powerful Czarnian!Lobo shrugs the burning attack off and rips away a smaller piece of floor to improvise a simple metal prod. Jamming the strip into Superman's chest gets him close enough to take control with a high thrusting kick to the face!

The Man of Steel smashes through another holographic wall, tumbling to his back, where Lobo takes the mount position to rain down with double barreled fists! Lobo only stops when Superman's gaze betrays his greatest fear!

Already bruised & battered, Superman has no choice but to run from the fight as Lobo closes in on a particular chunk of ice easily removed from the wall. Behind the plug is a small canister containing the one thing that could actually help Lobo fulfill his wish of killing Superman: Kryptonite!

Lobo finishes off the last of the Okaran alcohol and orders his boozed up travelling buddy Raof to teleport them to the surface. He's going to look for Superman -- but it turns out Superman is there waiting!

Superman is hidden within the telepathically controlled armor of a Kryptonian Warsuit! He fires on his adversary, but Lobo narrowly avoids the energy blast and pops the lid on the canister of Kryptonite Superman so fears!

The open canister bathes the warsuit in the green glow of radiation. It protects Superman from the worst of it, but he still feels its debilitating aura!

As the radiation begins to wear Superman down, the warsuit lurches clumsily toward Lobo. Time now against him, Superman maneuvers to flick Lobo with his massive robot gauntlet. It sends Lobo spilling to his space cycle -- a gambit with the worst possible results, or so it seems...

Lobo uses the hog's weapons to fire deadly missiles on Superman! They collide with the warsuit in a massive explosion! When the dust clears - Superman lies exposed and bloody amidst the twisted metal of the destroyed armor!

Lobo at last claims supremacy as he gazes upon Superman's corpse and accepts the adulation of Bibbo Bibbowski. He is the cabbie's new favourite. With that, he finally succumbs not to any injuries, but the alcohol in his blood! Passing out onto the snow, he's loaded onto his hog and teleported away by Raof.

As they disappear, so too does the horrific vision of Superman's body! An illusion cast by a holographic projector hotwired into the warsuit at the last moment! The Fortress of Solitude is a lonely sanctuary once more as the Man of Steel exits the armor and retires to his citadel of Kryptonian science.

The Hammer...
Once again we're tasked with parsing a winner from a complicated conclusion!

I can't help but think of The Dark Knight Returns #4, where Batman famously donned a mechanical suit against a superior opponent, before faking his own death with the fight's conclusion. I wonder if that moment might've been on writer Dan Jurgens' mind. Maybe not, but 1990 was just four years removed.

A key difference in "DKR" is the dominance Batman had established prior to his final moments. He was very much in control of the battle before orchestrating an exit with his faked death. He earned his win as well as devising an escape.

In today's example: Superman was very much on the backfoot against Lobo. Not so much faking his death to bolster an unlikely moral victory, as much as avoiding a fight he was already losing. Both the DKR and today's fights involved the scourge of kryptonite. For these reasons - we've gotta call Lobo the winner!

You'd probably think that's something I've done often, but no. This is only the second Lobo fight to feature on the site! A curious omission, if, like the premise of today's featured issue, you assume Lobo's reputation for brawling perfectly fits the bill for a "Comic Book Fight Club". After all, what else is Lobo known for?

I guess that's the reason I tend to feel a pang of resistance when it comes to "The Main Man". Lobo was conceived as a parody of the ultra-violent anti-heroes dominant in the early modern age of the eighties and nineties, but somewhere along the way, - the joke was lost. Instead of reflecting back upon the wanton excesses of characters like Wolverine and The Punisher at their worst; Lobo became a more enduring, un-ironic beacon for their most insane, mindless, ugly impulses.

It would be a mistake to say Lobo is exclusively a joke without a punchline. That's just a lingering facet that sometimes get in the way of my enjoyment of the character. Not so much in today's example, though. As a contrasting foil for the usually upstanding Superman - Lobo works pretty well! It's still a bit of a poor excuse for an issue-long fight, but at least there's a bit more going on beneath the surface!

I've got to admit, I've also got a real affection for this time in comics. 1990 in particular just has an interesting texture. Print was inky. Characters were classic and colourful, but refined. There was experimentation, but it came from a place of knowing, with more restraint than the destructive years that followed.

1990 wasn't the best year for Superman, but it was a time that had all of those qualities. Adventures of Superman #464, and the Lobo fight in it, is Part 2 of a small arc called The Day of The Krypton Man. In it, the Eradicator device slowly imposes its influence on Superman, reverting him to a more cold and calculating Kryptonian dressed in the traditional garb introduced by John Byrne.

A lot of The Day of The Krypton Man involves big dumb alien brawls like the Lobo fight, but it all looks great, and just has a fun vibe. I'm sure we'll come back to more of it at some point in the future. Hopefully my scans will do future issues more justice than this one.

If you just can't wait to get more Superman smackdown in your life, be sure to follow links throughout this post to discover more from The Man of Steel's battle log! You can also dive into the Secret Archive for a complete index of featured fights organized by publisher, series, and issue number!

Join the fight by liking and subscribing to Secret Wars on Infinite Earths on Twitter and Facebook! There you'll get daily links to battles inspired by the topics of the day! Be sure to like, share, or retweet your favourites to show your support and help steer future selections on The Comic Book Fight Club!

Winner: Lobo
#371 (+225) Lobo
#553 (new) Roaf [+1 assist]
#5 (--) Superman

SUPERMAN versus BRAINIAC

No One Defeats Brainiac! (DC)
Where: Adventures of Superman #519 When: January 1995 Why: Karl Kesel How: Barry Kitson & Mike Manley

The Story So Far...
The world mourned when Superman gave his life to stop the rampaging behemoth known as Doomsday. To fill his void emerged four heroes claiming to be the genuine article, unaware the real Superman would survive his injuries, and return from the grave to fight for truth and justice once again! Or did he...?

The citizens of Metropolis are forced to question the legitimacy of their hero once again when his corpse rematerializes inside the abandoned tomb! Even Superman himself is unsure of his reality, beginning a search of any villain who may be responsible!

Brainiac appears beyond suspicion, remaining comatose on the planet New Genesis after his last battle. Even in this state, however, his powerful mind envisions the demise of his arch-nemesis! Brainiac did indeed create the false image of a fallen Superman while in his coma -- and now he has returned to make that vision a reality!

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Superman 6 (Invincible)
Intelligence: Brainiac 6 (Genius)
Speed: Superman 6 (Mach Speed)
Stamina: Superman 6 (Generator)
Agility: Superman 3 (Acrobat)
Fighting: Superman 3 (Street Wise)
Energy: Draw 5 (Lasers)
Total: Superman 33 (Super)

Time to kick-off a big month of DC Injustice with the long overdue debut for one of the DC Universe's greatest threats! He's a nemesis well known to Superman, but we're yet to see what he can do in the Secret Wars on Infinite Earths!

Brainiac is a naturally gifted scientific genius from the planet Colu. Real name Vril Dox, he fought against the Computer Tyrants who ruled his home world, before leaving the planet in search of greater knowledge and experience.

Notoriously known as The Collector of Worlds; Brainiac used his advanced technologies to literally shrink entire cities for storage and examination. The most famous of his stolen domains is the bottled city of Kandor: the last surviving populace of Superman's birth planet - Krypton!

Brainiac became a nemesis for Superman when he found his way to Earth, making various attempts to steal landmass, threaten loved ones, and generally cause terror. During this time he possessed various bodies of artificial and living nature, including a telepathic magician named Milton Fine, and even Lex Luthor!

His powers have included advanced mechanical weapons, remote manipulation of computers and technology, super-human strength, speed, telekinesis, enhanced durability and stamina, and a phenomenal level of natural intellect!

We haven't seen Superman go up against anyone quite like his old nemesis Brainiac, but there have been various instances of battles against the brilliant, the brawny, and well equipped!

Look no further than Marvel's green-skinned Hulk for an opponent who possessed both phenomenal strength and intellect, but was defeated by Superman in Marvel versus DC #3! We also saw him effortlessly stop Lex Luthor in his armored power-suit during a team skirmish in Justice League of America #15!

In Action Comics #713, we saw Superman challenged by a very different opponent - a zealous villain calling himself Saviour! He could literally manifest weapons or super-powers by sheer force of belief, conjuring thought into reality through advanced psycho-kinesis.

For today's feature fight Brainiac has reassumed the Milton Fine personality he once possessed. That means heavy on conjuring and psychic manifestation. The same year as Savior and similar tactics. That means he's dangerous, but the same combination of determination and cunning can deliver Supes to victory.

The Tape: Superman Ranking: Superman (#6)

What Went Down...
Superman and the Special Crimes Unit watch desperately as the green menace called Brainiac stands amidst the carnage of a torn Metropolis street. In his hand he clutches the sweater of Lois Lane: Star reporter for The Daily Planet, and the love of Superman's life!

A hostage, Lois may be - but never helpless! With Brainiac distracted by a mano-a-mano challenge from The Man of Steel; Lois pivots to thrust her boot heel deep into an unsuspecting torso!

Freedom comes with a price. Lois now faces certain death hovering above the gaping chasm rendered in the road -- or so it seems. In reality, the drop is just an illusion cast by the malicious mind of Brainiac! With his trick exposed, he turns his mental powers toward the meddlesome reporter. Superman acts!

Like a living missile Superman fly-tackles Brainiac from behind, diverting his intended mental strike against Lois!

Superman confronts his arch-nemesis over the manifestation of a doppelganger created in the image of his corpse. The accidental apparition becomes Brainiac's physical threat. The dead Man of Steel stands and unleashes raw heat vision!

Superman recovers from the surprise attack and retaliates with a devastating right cross to his mirror's jaw! The imitation Superman appears to share the original's phenomenal durability. He fires back with a right hand of his own!

No mere illusion - the false Superman hoists massive pieces of rubble and smashes them over the true Man of Steel! The genuine article is undeterred, bursting from the debris to attack like a speeding bullet!

The hero has no reason to hold back against the soulless construct. He pummels his short-haired doppelganger as they fly through the air -- and a nearby building! They make a crash-landing at the feet of the Special Crimes Unit, but emerging from the dust are now two identical Supermen!

With the copy now claiming legitimacy, the SCU decide to take everybody in for questioning to sort it out peacefully. Lois Lane has a better idea, quizzing the duplicate heroes on the one person they'd save if Brainiac was about to destroy Earth. One rejects the premise, while the other chooses Lois. The latter, offering the answer Lois wants to hear -- which goes unheard by all others!

With his gambit exposed; Brainiac destroys Turpin's pistol with a bolt of mental energy and rushes for his phony Superman! He dives head-first at the motionless copy -- absorbing its mental energies in a dazzling blast of light!

The Brainiac that emerges is surrounded in a shell of raw energy! He uses his full power to launch a frontal physical assault on his unwavering nemesis!

Superman is sent smashing into a nearby building, but emerges unscathed. Brainiac hoists a nearby truck above his head, responding to his foe's defiance by pile driving him into the street with the heavy duty vehicle!

The villain proposes Metropolis be Superman's tombstone, offering to dig his grave. He does so, pounding the ground with sufficient force to send a very real tremor that rips through the road!

Once again, The Man of Tomorrow paws his way from the rubble. He's getting tired of "everyone trying to do their version of The Death of Superman!" His nemesis doesn't mind playing a "variation on a theme".

A blast of telekinetic energy shunts Superman into a would-be early grave, but the only prematurity is Brainiac's celebratory cackling as he covers Superman in dirt! He rises -- coming for Brainiac with clenched fists!

An uppercut rattles Brainiac inside his telekinetic force field! A right hook snaps his head sideways as if a direct hit! A tackle pushes him through the remaining bricks and mortar of a crumbled wall! A straight right comes with the musing that Brainiac is just two-bit carnival magician Milton Fine! The shell cracks!

The mentalist attempts to reinforce the confidence of his shielding and persona. He claims intergalactic terror at the name Brainiac - but Superman isn't buying it! With but a single extended hand, he catches Brainiac's fist - and responds!

A determined right hand shatters Brainiac's force field!

The impact reduces the fiend to a quivering shadow of his former self. Exposed, he clings briefly to a rejection of defeat before passing out. The mental toll of Superman's attack on his mind and force field clearly too great!

When Brainiac recovers shortly thereafter, he is no longer the intergalactic menace who plagues Metropolis! Instead, he has resumed the personality of magician Milton Fine. Superman helps him to his feet, ushering him to a better life -- at least for as long as it will last.

The Hammer...
A slightly ignoble end for one of the DC Universe's most notorious villains, but a welcome induction into The Comic Book Fight Club!

Brainiac is one of the bigger names to have eluded the Secret Wars on Infinite Earths over the years. There's never been any conceited effort to keep him out of the fighting ranks, but I have to admit, he hasn't been flagged as a priority until now.

It's always been a given that Brainiac comes somewhere just behind Lex Luthor in the pantheon of classic Superman villains. His status was earned over some sixty years of tyranny, beginning with his print debut in 1958.

I tend to think the past weighs heavily on Brainiac. He's a quintessential sci-fi baddy of the time, right at home with movie villains of the '50s and early '60s. Attempts to modernize the character have led to a long and tangled history, not always to the benefit of the character, or the removal of dated reference.

The Milton Fine version (seen today), though visually distinct, doesn't do a great deal to ingratiate the character into preference. I've gotta note: I really looking at this issue. Mike Manley's finishes are sumptuously strong and really pop with the bold colour palette of Glenn Whitmore. All those vivid purples, greens, and oranges are a treat with those deep inky blacks! Always nice to see Superman in bold blue and red, too. Trunks included.

The big-headed, moustachio magician still feels as much a throwback as a green man from outer space who wants to shrink the city. I have to imagine that's one of the reasons the character remained in flux.

I have some appreciation for the robot-bodied Brainiac that came just prior to the possession of Milton Fine. Immortalized in the Super Powers toy line and comics, and briefly seen in Crisis on Infinite Earths, that version did a solid job of reinventing a visual palette worthy of the pop culture of the eighties.

The skeletal robotic vision came a year before The Terminator was in theatres, and gave Brainiac a real sense of menace. It was a big departure from the green skinned villain of yore, but still felt like it had a foot in the sci-fi tropes of a bygone era, lingering fondly in popular reference.

I imagine the relatively short-lived robot form was a tough sell to traditionalists, and I ultimately appreciate subsequent attempts in the 2000s to consolidate the various styles. The modern Brainiac that's still a green-skinned humanoid, but suitably symbiotic in his relationship with technology, is a nice fusion.

As time goes on, I tend to see increasing value in restoring some characters to their original presentation. Modern sensibilities have had a tendency to push things into a convergence of repeating motifs. The more the meanings of early reference fade into obscurity, the more they become viable as a sense of identity, rather than anachronism. For those who know, the fifties spaceman with the citywide shrink ray is a torchbearer. For those who don't, he's an eerie phantom of strange intent.

Slithery, techno-tendrils add danger and a creepy pseudo-organic vibe that feels almost The Matrix meets Hellraiser. I'm not sure if the current version of Brainiac will endure as the definitive vision, but I've got no beef.

That's the version you'll find in Injustice 2 when it invades home consoles May 16th! Brainiac is the big bad boss invading the world of the fighting game sequel. Featured fights in May will be taking loose inspiration from the game, spotlighting some of the new and returning characters!

This entry is a big one for fans of the fighting ranks, as well! Superman punches his way back into the Top 5 with today's feature victory. Trainspotters will note he bumps Marvel rival Hulk back down to #6 as a result!

Want to see more of the fights that shaped the ranks? Dive into the Secret Archive to find every battle organized by publisher, series and issue. Or, follow along on Twitter and Facebook to get daily fights inspired by the topics of the day! Throw a like and a share to amaze your friends and support the site!

Winner: Superman
#5 (+1) Superman
#158 (+117) Dan Turpin [+1 assist]
#524 (new) Lois Lane [+1 assist]
#839 (new) Brainiac