APOCALYPSE versus HIGH EVOLUTIONARY

Unnatural Selection (Marvel)
Where: X-Factor Annual #3 When: 1988
Why: Louise Simonson How: Terry Shoemaker

The Story So Far...
Since the 1920s, Dr. Herbert Wyndham has held a fascination for genetics and evolution. Experimentation on his own makeup transformed him into the brilliant High Evolutionary, whose agenda to advance humanity has led to many amazing discoveries -- and atrocities!

In subterranean caverns weaving deep beneath the Earth, The High Evolutionary's Purifiers are deployed to extinguish the devolved and primitive bloodline of the Moloids, but from among their mindless ranks rises a mutation capable of organizing their endless armies.

A psychic scream from the mutant Moloid is felt by "sensitives" across the Earth -- including Caliban: loyal hound to an ancient being who would regard the Moloid's struggle as fitness to survive. Now the High Evolutionary's tampering must answer to the Darwinistic challenge of Apocalypse!

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Apocalypse 6 (Invincible)
Intelligence: High Evolutionary 6 (Genius)
Speed: Apocalypse 3 (Athlete)
Stamina: Draw 7 (Unstoppable)
Agility: Apocalypse 6 (Rubber)
Fighting: Apocalypse 4 (Trained)
Energy: Draw 5 (Lasers)
Total: Apocalypse 36 (Cosmic)

You think just because a couple of guys aced AP Bio they can't start somethin'?

The differences of their abilities are almost secondary to the contrast of their beliefs. They both observe life on Earth with a goal towards advancement, and at times their methodology is not all that different, but for the ancient mutant called Apocalypse, there is great difference between natural and unnatural selection!

The High Evolutionary was once a mortal Englishman, Dr. Herbert Wydnham on scholarship to Oxford University, whose study of genetics led him to evolve into a being of vast knowledge, perspective, and power.

Wyndham has experienced life as a neanderthal and demi-god, commanding his Evolutionary Accelerator from bases on Wundagore Mountain, and a distant Counter-Earth, where he resided with animals evolved into a breed of New Men -- part of his efforts to study and contrive the advanced progress of humanity.

His distinct suit of armor houses the best of his technologies, granting the High Evolutionary varying degrees of super-human strength, durability, and an arsenal of weaponry and scientific applications. He'll need them!

Apocalypse is privy to his own array of scientific wonderments, as well as genetic mutations that have allowed him to become strong over centuries of survival -- in total control of his molecular structure and energy projection!

Apocalypse conquered Earth itself in an alternate timeline, and has thought nothing of fighting gods into submission. Will his challenge of the High Evolutionary go any other way? Let's find out!

The Tape: Apocalypse Ranking: Apocalypse (#138)

What Went Down...

From his vantage point in outer space, The High Evolutionary peers deep beneath the Earth's crust, watching as his Purifiers encounter unexpected resistance from the subterranean moloids. It is not the only unexpected presence to trouble him.

Suddenly from behind beckons the booming voice of an intruder!

There stands the looming figure of Apocalypse and a philosophical quandary concerning the fate of the moloids.

The ancient mutant does not strictly object to the violent treatment of the savage underground race, but En Sabah Nur has seen centuries of survival and evolution, and he aims to bestow upon the brilliant and immortal Evoltuionary the wisdom of patience.

The High Evolutionary narrowly steps clear of a massive energy blast that rips through his powerful computers!

Challenging Apocalypse's arrogance, he accuses the ancient mutant of showing his own impatience in his attack.

The Evolutionary returns fire with massive blasts from his hands that rip through the moon-like facade of his own space station!

The pair are sucked into the void of space, but neither man would be so unevolved to concern himself with the triviality of oxygen.

While the High Evolutionary drifts unaffected, Apocalypse shifts his molecules to become a living bio-mechanical space suit!

High Evolutionary speaks of his own path, experiencing life as both animal and demi-god. He blasts more energy at Apocalypse, who exerts control over his form sufficient to jet himself clear of the danger with ankle-mounted boosters.

Apocalypse rejects the "unnatural selection" of High Evolutionary's efforts to sterilize those he deems unfit. He would see time weed out the weak, and advance the strong, allowing them to exceed and escape the presumed dead ends High Evolutionary arrogantly predicts.

Apocalypse extends his reach toward the High Evolutionary, stretching and contorting his arm to become a gigantic mechanical vice!

He grips the Evolutionary by the torso and draws him closer, inviting the scientist's scorn: "I recognize you, Apocalypse. Your claims... to encourage the growth of the strong... is at variance with your deeds. I consider you a villain of the first order."

The ancient mutant laughs uproariously, claiming everything he does tests human and mutantkind: "-- a trial by fire in which humanity grows strong as a species... or dies."

High Evolutionary wrestles with Apocalypse's body and ideas, grabbing at the mutant's arms, while Apocalypse grasps at his magenta face plate. The scientist works to break the stalemate by rapidly increasing his size!

Looming over Apocalypse, the High Evolutionary describes himself as a benevolent parent making choices for an immature humanity. A claim Apocalypse scoffs at, seeing the Evolutionary as merely attempting to remake them in his own image.

"Your own evolution was forced... and see what you've become. Disembodied... For all your power, with only that armor to give you the semblance of substance. You are a creature of the living dead... Who can no longer reproduce himself... The ultimate genetic dead end!"

Apocalypse dodges a massive energy blast from High Evolutionary's super-sized gauntlet, swinging his own enlarged clamp-hand like a battering ram into the giant target of The Evolutionary's mid-section!

For a moment the High Evolutionary is flung through space, but when he completely disappears Apocalypse knows his gambit. He can see through his invisibility and ensnare him in extending tendrils.

With the High Evolutionary in his grasp, Apocalypse uses his vast resources to teleport the both of them to the subterranean tunnels of the moloids.

There, he intends them to bare personal witness to the battle between The Purifiers, moloids, and their recruited allies -- the mutants of X-Factor!

Watching from a shadowy outcrop over the inner chamber, the High Evolutionary continues to regard the telepathic moloid rallying his people as little more than an animal acting without conscious, creative thought. A notion that will soon be challenged, even if the physical battle between he and Apocalypse is at an end.

The Hammer...

What a fantastic struggle! Not just the clash of super-powers, but the collision of philosophies! The debate is more compelling than the trading of blows, and not just because it renders something approaching a result.

At times Apocalypse wasn't always everything I hoped he would be -- especially in those early days. Sometimes he's a little too willing to roll around in the mud, a little too corny in his villainy to fulfill those big ideas of Darwinist malevolence.

I like an Apocalypse who is lofty in his ideals, coldly grandiose in his speech, and upright and strong in his bearing. Still very much the villain in the potential of his schemes, but somewhat aloof in his actions. He isn't quite that as he swings oversized novelty limbs in space, but the character study is compelling.

In X-Factor Annual #3 it feels as if Louise Simonson is taking the slightly awkward premise of The Evolutionary War -- Marvel's 1988 crossover through various series' Annuals, including The Punisher and Silver Surfer -- and spinning it into an excellent opportunity to examine her recurring antagonist.

I enjoy the way Apocalypse almost assumes the conceit of a hero here, coming to the aid of a lowly moloid whose life the reader might be willing to disregard, even if they feel compassion towards his plight.

Apocalypse is seen to note that he doesn't outright object to the hostile treatment endured by the primitive moloids, but he will defend the emerging potential of a fledgling mutant whose powers present a greater will to survive, and oppose the sterilization of the species.

It's an interesting premise, and a good demonstration of the differences between Apocalypse and High Evolutionary, who might otherwise appear similar in their grand objectives, if inconsistent from appearance to appearance.

The distinctions can get a little slippery, especially over time, but in essence, the High Evolutionary is a practicing supremacist, attempting to reach a pre-determined outcome for humanity through bio-engineering, while Apocalypse is in theory more of an equal opportunity offender, uniquely interested in mutation, and intent on provoking accelerated natural selection through periodic stress tests.

This might seem contradictory when we look at Apocalypse's meddling with the genetics of characters like Warren Worthington, the Angel remade as his Horseman of Death, but we must also remember that these characters are not strictly adherent to the ideas we associate them with. They are also presented to be living characters, with selfish motivations such as the creation of servants, and may be seen to change their mind or approach, from time to time.

Although High Evolutionary remains committed in his convictions and desire to share company with those similar to himself, it's nice that he acknowledges, in his private thoughts, that the mutant moloid, now going by Val-Or, earned a reprieve for he and his people, who once served The Evolutionary himself, and helped build his citadel on Wundagore Mountain. That's gratitude for ya!

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Winner: Inconclusive (Draw)
#129 (+9) Apocalypse
#496 (new) High Evolutionary

APOCALYPSE versus LOKI

Meanwhile, On Earth... (Marvel)
Where: X-Factor #50 When: January 1990
Why: Louise Simonson How: Terry Shoemaker

The Story So Far...
Plotting the ultimate revenge against his brother Thor and the mighty Avengers -- Loki disguises himself to approach some of the world's most powerful villains and coerce them into joining his coordinated Acts of Vengeance!

The promise of defeating adversaries by deploying villains they've never faced appeals to some of the world's most powerful criminal masterminds, but not everyone is so easily convinced. The ancient mutant Apocalypse has watched their actions from afar, and when Loki arrives to recruit him -- he is less than reciprocal!

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Apocalypse 6 (Invincible)
Intelligence: Draw 5 (Professor)
Speed: Draw 3 (Athlete)
Stamina: Apocalypse 7 (Unstoppable)
Agility: Apocalypse 6 (Rubber)
Fighting: Apocalypse 4 (Trained)
Energy: Loki 6 (Mass Destruction)
Total: Apocalypse 36 (Cosmic)

It's not often Apocalypse faces an opponent who's older than he is, but should the ancient mutant be humbled in the presence of Loki? Not necessarily...

The Asgardian god of mischief often favors pulling the strings of others to achieve his goals without getting his own hands dirty. That's exactly what brought about the Acts of Vengeance, and today's attempt to recruit Apocalypse into a cabal that includes Doctor Doom, Magneto, Red Skull, Mandarin, Kingpin, and The Wizard!

Apocalypse is something of a manipulator himself, but his penchant for recruiting Four Horsemen in no way reflects upon his own willingness to live by a philosophy of survival of the fittest.

The hardships of many centuries evolved En Sabah Nur from a pallid child in the sands of Ancient Egypt, to a techno-organic powerhouse modified by Celestial technology, and in total molecular control of his body! We saw him extend limbs, distort his figure, and unleash powerful energy blasts in Uncanny X-Men #295!

As much as Loki may appear to be a conniving coward at times, he also possess considerable power of his own. When pushed to fight he's capable of unleashing a variety of destructive energy-based attacks and enchantments.

We saw all of Loki's skills on display when he tricked the Thor of the Heroes Reborn pocket universe into joining him in a fight against the Avengers!

In theory Loki should lord over most mortals, but Apocalypse is one man who has convened with even greater cosmic powers than a god. Its difficult to imagine how even Loki's most malignant curses could suppress his will to survive.

The Tape: Apocalypse Ranking: Apocalypse (#378)

What Went Down...

Beneath the towering gaze of Apocalypse stands a mysterious man in a grey flannel suit. He has slick black hair, and brings an offer with no clear benefit...

This man invites the ancient mutant to join his so-called "Acts of Vengeance": a scheme Apocalypse has watched unfold from afar. He has seen through the self-styled servant, recognizing him as the true mastermind who manipulates a cabal of Earth's deadliest villains against a gallery of unsuspecting opponents.

Apocalypse shapes his hand into an extending mechanical vice and snatches the interloper off his feet! He wants to know who this man really is and what he hopes to gain from the "absurdity" of his mischievous game.

A "snap" of energy transforms the mystery man -- revealing the true guise of Loki!

The god of lies & mischief leaps from Apocalypse's grasp and chides him for questioning his right to "annoy the heroes of Earth". He fires a spiteful question of his own: "By what idiocy dost thou, a mutant mortal, hope to imprison a god?"

Loki accompanies his words with a potent blast of energy that knocks Apocalypse off his feet. A minor inconvenience for a mutant in complete control of his physical form. He taunts Loki with his own responsibility for creating his hated Avengers.

Loki glides overhead as Apocalypse falls and tempts the mutant with the promise that others such as X-Factor and the New Mutants will feel the wrath of his conspiracy, just as the Avengers have.

Apocalypse wraps his flattened arm around a metal strut, stopping his descent while transforming his other into an energy cannon.

The ancient mutant fires at the airborne god whilst advocating for humanity's defiant courage.

He deems the petty self-interest of Loki's "master villains" an inevitability of mortal will, which resists the death that begins with their very first breath. The "Acts of Vengeance" has already failed -- and it could be no other way.

Loki darts between the exploding bursts of energy, and dismisses En Sabah Nur's flattering observations of humanity -- indignantly insisting he could crush them!

He's unprepared when Apocalypse suddenly blocks his aerial path -- rising as a rocket-shaped monolith that challenges his godly power!

Loki falls to the floor, momentarily humbled.

Apocalypse reminds the mischief-maker that he too has lived as a god. His perspective is formed from centuries above, and among, humanity. He has felt the glow of worship and continues to receive the power of others' faith.

With that -- one of Apocalypse's true believers emerges from the shadows!

Caliban thrashes Loki from behind with his hand -- confirming the power he has gained from his worship of Apocalypse!

Loki braces his back and views the "servant" with scorn: "Who are you creature, to interrupt your betters?"

He summons a mystic bolt to engulf Caliban in a golden flame, but suddenly it's Loki finds himself surrounded by an inexplicable energy!

The distraction provided by Caliban allowed Apocalypse to activate a machine harnessing ancient Celestial technology. Its power is awesome enough to trap even a god within its field -- helpless like so much as an insect caught in a jar.

The energy field's draining effects are a metaphor for Apocalypse's outlook for the future threats facing mankind. He delivers a sermon, rejecting Loki's attempted manipulations, and declaring him an enemy of a humanity who will be tempered like steel until they can challenge even gods!

Loki declares himself unafraid of such threats. and uses his godly magicks to disappear from the confines of his energy-based bondage -- and appear on a towering monitor screen.

"I am simply ending a discussion that had become tedious... and pointless. Your humans will not survive long enough to challenge the gods, Apocalypse, and you, so proud of your wisdom, are a fool. Dare to oppose me... or my plans... and you will join your human race in death."

Loki shatters the screen, but doesn't damage Apocalypse's unwavering confidence in his plans to send Caliban to test humanity's worthy survivors.

The Hammer...

With Acts of Vengeance Marvel unleashed an early banner event with a simple but effective high concept premise: heroes are confronted by villains they wouldn't ordinarily face. The result was a range of memorable and interesting match-ups, such as Magneto vs Spider-Man, and Freedom Force vs The Avengers.

It was all initiated by Loki: who tricked some of Marvel's most powerful master criminals into pooling their resources into a conspiracy to create a major paradigm shift. A lofty revenge scheme that also successfully roped in Doctor Doom, Magneto, Red Skull, The Mandarin, Kingpin, and The Wizard!

There were a few holdouts and omissions from the line-wide event. Sebastian Shaw became an unwitting participant in an "Aftermath" issue when Loki fused his Sentinels into the towering, nuclear-powered destroyer called Tri-Sentinel. That was also one of the cosmic-powered Spidey issues that were instant favourites.

There was a lot going on in comics of the time, and Acts of Vengeance was a fairly loose crossover for the era. Some key issues dealt with core developments in the master villain's plot, but for the most part, it was a collection of unusual guest spots that added extra flavour and excitement to on-going storylines.

X-Factor #50 is a prime example: predominantly dedicated to the Judgement War sci-fi/fantasy epic that took the titular team to a distant, unnamed planet watched by Celestials. A space adventure that kept them out of Loki's reaches.

The series' late involvement was instead reserved for arch-nemesis Apocalypse, who's shown already watching the unusual shift in villainous alliances, in X-Factor #49 [pictured below].

It's one of those classic comic book scenes that captures the excitement of the event by showing the likes of Hobgoblin and Kingpin in an X-book. Highly unusual at a time when villains were still typically kept contained by their respective heroic nemeses', and editorial houses. It tickles the imagination and invites a reader to seek out characters they might not know a lot about. Good comics!

Apocalypse wonders if the unusual movements of Acts of Vengeance might be a sign of the coming "Armageddon" his Darwinian schemes aim to prepare for.

I particularly like that he first notes the contradictory combination of Holocaust survivor Magneto, and World Ward II Nazi scumbag Red Skull. Strange bedfellows  eventually addressed in Captain America -- a future feature fight, to be sure.

When the disguised Loki appears before Apocalypse via observation monitors, it seems like he's going to recruit another powerful ally. As we've already seen: it actually erupts into another exciting battle between villains, filling the final six pages of X-Factor's milestone fiftieth issue with an unusual clash of titans.

Apocalypse became a more overtly evil figure in later years, most notably when he achieved global domination in the grim alternate-timeline of the Age of Apocalypse. It could be forgotten that there was a glimmer of altruism in his original grand design for empowering humanity through survival of the fittest. An aspect of his goals that got a little lost along the way.

It's nice to revisit a story where he very clearly outlines his broad philosophy, and declares a god like Loki an enemy of humanity whose defeat is the end goal of his success. A good bit of character work, and a nice way to set the fight up while also keeping Acts of Vengeance more central to non-mutant characters. There had been multiple X-Men-centric crossovers before this one.

If you'd like to get acquainted with Apocalypse and today's featured fight in its entirety you can find it collected in Acts of Vengeance: Spider-Man & X-Men or as part of Essential X-Factor Volume 3. Use the Amazon purchase links provided below to do any of your online shopping and you'll not only get a good deal delivered to your door -- you'll help support the site at no extra cost!

Secret Wars on Infinite Earths has featured more than 600 battles and ranked well over 1000 characters! You can find them all by diving into the Secret Archive for a complete index of featured fights in order of publisher, series, and issue number. Or refine your search by following topic links throughout each post!

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Winner: Apocalypse (w/ Caliban)
#130 (+248) Apocalypse
#613 (new) Caliban [+1 assist]
#968 (-244) Loki

NEW MUTANTS versus HELLFIRE CLUB

King of the Hill! (Marvel)
Where: New Mutants #75 When: May 1989
Why: Louise Simonson How: John Byrne

The Story So Far...
When an attack on the X-Men's home turf led to the inevitable defeat of The Marauders -- an explosive device planted in the X-Mansion allowed Mister Sinister to strike the ultimate revenge against his enemies!

Unaware of the events that transpired; the New Mutants return from battling an alien called Gosamyr to make the shocking discovery that their school is in ruins!

A brief skirmish with an injured Sabretooth gives them a taste of what transpired, but there's no time to dwell on the past. A new threat arises when former Headmaster Magneto returns with The Hellfire Club at his side!

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Sebastian Shaw 6 (Invincible)
Intelligence: Magneto 5 (Professor)
Speed: Cannonball 5 (Super-Human)
Stamina: Sebastian Shaw 7 (Unstoppable)
Agility: Warlock 6 (Malleable)
Fighting: Mirage 4 (Trained)
Energy: Selene 6 (Mass Destruction)
Total: Magneto 28 (Metahuman)

The New Mutants are: Cannonball, Sunspot, Wolfsbane, Mirage, Warlock, and Illyana Rasputin.

This is a young team, facing the challenge of a once trusted mentor, but that doesn't mean we should count them out. They'll all go on to great things, and already show signs of their future promise -- even at this early stage. On their way here they dealt with a short-lived challenge from a weakened Sabretooth.

The Hellfire Club are: "White King" Magneto, "Black King" Sebastian Shaw, "White Queen" Emma Frost, and "Black Queen" Selene.

The Inner Circle clearly have experience on their side - none more so than Magneto. His admission as White King comes with his intimate knowledge of the New Mutants, having served very recently as their Headmaster.

We've seen Magneto withstand the coordinated powers of the adult X-Men in X-Men #113. He's clearly a major threat all on his own, and even the telepathic assault that took him out in X-Men #25 is covered by his Hellfire Club support.

Emma Frost hasn't developed her diamond form yet, coming to the fight strictly as a powerful telepath. Sebastian Shaw offers super-human muscle, able to absorb any impact against him and convert it into strength. Selene rounds out the group with mastery over inanimate objects and life-draining.This one really comes down to team dynamics and execution of strategy. For the New Mutants to have a real chance they'd need to clearly identify the strengths and weakness of themselves and their opponents.

This is long before Emma Frost will develop an invulnerable diamond form, so taking her telepathic powers out of the battle early with a frontal assault could be a good use of Cannonball or Wolfsbane. Removing Sebastian Shaw without powering him up could be a job for Warlock, who could eject him similarly to Nimrod in Uncanny X-Men #209. Wolfsbane could claw Selene, while Mirage's empathic image casting is free to attack Magneto at his core.

The New Mutants could also try to turn Magneto against his new teammates. Will the perfect scenario play out for them? Let's see how it went...

The Tape: New Mutants Ranking: Cannonball (#115)

What Went Down...
Hovering above the ruins of Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters: Magneto and The Hellfire Club survey the damage. Angered by their former headmaster's return, Sunspot grabs a massive hunk of damaged machinery and hurls it!

The steel equipment is effortlessly deflected by The Master of Magnetism, who also holds his clubmen afloat. He allows Black King, Sebastian Shaw, to descend and match Sunspot on the ground. He attacks with a devastating left hook!

Cannonball leaps to his teammate's defense for the second time this day, but finds his path to Shaw suddenly cut off by a rising wall of wreckage. A defensive measure courtesy of Selene, she who commands all that is inanimate!

Cannonball smashes into the wall and falls to his hands and knees!

He's too stunned to resist The Black Queen, who lingers over the fallen firebrand with sinister intent. She traces her hand over the back of Cannonball's neck, preparing to drain his life-force -- when she suddenly becomes a decrepit hag!

The transformation is a mere illusion plucked from Selene's own psyche by the empathic powers of Mirage! The young mutant makes her inner most fear a tangible reality, but she's soon undone by a psychic assault from Emma Frost!

The White Queen mentally forces Mirage to release Selene from her influence, inciting Warlock to bare massive fangs in defense of his teammate!

The techno-organic creature notes his imperviousness to Emma Frosts' telepathic bolts, but fails to consider his absolute vulnerability to the Master of Magnetism! His cartoonishly distorting body is swept toward the rest of the new Mutants, who find themselves collectively surrounded by twisting metal!

Tired of their rebellious opposition, Magneto holds his former students encased in a ball of metal to end the battle.

The Hammer...
With the New Mutants at his mercy: Magneto quizzes them about the young mystery girl in their company and their missing member. He's surprised to learn his once promising student, Illyana Rasputin, has chosen to become a child to avoid succumbing to her own darker impulses.

Despite their defeat, the New Mutants defiantly refuse to return to their former headmaster's tutelage. The team has simply seen the former villain make too many compromises to ever accept him as their teacher again.

This effectively concludes Magneto's four years as New Mutants Headmaster, and a member of the X-Men. He'll return to villainy shortly thereafter, rebuilding Asteroid M, and joining the cabal of conspiring villains in Acts of Vengeance. We saw how that led him to battle Spider-Man in Amazing Spider-Man #327.

The split from the New Mutants has immediate consequences within the pages of New Mutants #75, where Sebastian Shaw seizes the opportunity to challenge Magneto's position as White King. In the end it always comes down to in-fighting and power struggles with these people.

Shaw claims Magneto was elected into the Inner Circle as a leader of both the X-Men and New Mutants -- but now controls nothing. Magneto takes that about as well as you'd expect, and the two throw down for the main event battle hinted at on the cover of the issue [see; top]. You can be certain we'll return to take a closer look at that fight some time in the future!

Today was supposed to mark the long-awaited wide release of New Mutants in theatres, but FOX's final X-related film was once again delayed, by the closure of cinemas, and unprecedented measures to curb global spread of COVID-19.

These are strange days, but I figure Secret Wars on Infinite Earths can do its small part by continuing to feature some of the characters who would've been in theatres around this time. It's been a good time to do some extra reading while we're all self-isolating, and hopefully it provides a fun distraction.

As I've mentioned before, even as a young reader, I was never one to buy-in to kid heroes. That meant the New Mutants weren't really on my radar until a year later, when they got a major overhaul from the style guide of Rob Liefeld.

The revamp did a good job of shaking off the impression these were the geeks of the X-Men universe. I appreciate the effort to present them as authentically youthful and in training, but I've never been a big fan of this iteration of their matching black & gold uniforms. The update was well timed.

I appreciate that today's featured fight showed the New Mutants coming into their powers, but ultimately outclassed by their opponents. It moved necessary storylines forward, and avoided the dubious trope of kid-heroes overcoming unfathomable odds. This time the bad guys won and that feels credible.

Star pupil Cannonball did manage to violently kayo Sabretooth on the way to this fight, after Sunspot withstood a full rake of his claws. That was another well weighted way to give the team a win before they took a loss. It also set up a future rematch that we can officially add to the To Do list.

You can discover relevant past, present, and future fights by following links throughout this article, or by diving into the Secret Archive. That's where you'll find every battle indexed by publisher, series, and issue number! Or subscribe to Twitter and Facebook for daily links to battles inspired by the day's topics!

Secret Wars on Infinite Earths has featured well over 600 battles and counting! If you like superhero smackdown and want to see the service continue you can contribute via Patreon. Patrons gain insider access to the schedule, and can get involved with special feature articles and polls. Not to mention fostering my eternal gratitude and continued survival!

If today's battle has whetted your appetite, you can get the full story collected in Epic Collection New Mutants: Curse of the Valkyrie. Shop using the Amazon purchase link provided and you'll find yourself a good deal at a safe distance -- while Amazon supports the site at no extra cost! Nice!

Winners: Magneto & Hellfire Club
#81 (+60) Magneto
#182 (+288) Emma Frost
#390 (+508) Sebastian Shaw
#391 (+506) Selene
#128 (-13) Cannonball
#341 (-187) Sunspot
#353 (-156) Magik (Illyana Rasputin)
#357 (-128) Warlock (Phalanx)
#589 (-44) Mirage
#907 (new) Wolfsbane

SABRETOOTH versus NEW MUTANTS

King of the Hill! (Marvel)
Where: New Mutants #75 When: May 1989
Why: Louise Simonson How: John Byrne

The Story So Far...
When The Marauders attacked the X-Men on their home turf, the short-lived siege was seemingly thwarted -- but a hidden explosive device within the X-Mansion itself allowed Mister Sinister to make a final strike.

The combined ranks of X-Factor and the X-Men recovered from the blast to defeat Mister Sinister, but there was nothing they could do about the mansion's destruction.

When the New Mutants return home from battling the alien Gosamyr, they're shocked to discover the school in ruins. Unaware of the battle that transpired, they scour the wreckage for survivors. When Mirage senses someone clinging to life, they jump into action to rescue them from the rubble.

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Sunspot 5 (Super-Human)
Intelligence: Sabretooth 4 (Tactician)
Speed: Cannonball 5 (Super-Human)
Stamina: Sabretooth 5 (Marathoner)
Agility: Warlock 6 (Malleable)
Fighting: Sabretooth 7 (Living Weapon)
Energy: Magik 5 (Lasers)
Total: Sabretooth 28 (Metahuman)

Sabretooth is no stranger to stalking young mutants, and today he's got the scent of a fresh batch of students from Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters!

The New Mutants are: Cannonball, Sunspot, Wolfsbane, Mirage, Warlock, and Illyana Rasputin. The team is green, but not so untested that they can't rely on their powers to handle themselves.

There's an obvious parallel between Wolfsbane's werewolf-like, lycanthropic transformation, and the animal savagery of Sabretooth. He was quite lean in these days, but probably still holds a size and weight advantage over her -- something Wolverine had to contend with over the years, as in Wolverine #50.

Sabretooth also has a wealth of experience as a mercenary, but that hasn't always informed his fighting style. He typically relied on brute strength and malice against the speed and finesse of Iron Fist, narrowly coming up short in both Iron Fist #14, and Power Man & Iron Fist #66.

None of the New Mutants has the martial arts skills, or speed & agility of Iron Fist, but that might not be such a problem. in Adventures of the X-Men #7, he returned to the X-Mansion to stalk Jubilee, but was ultimately thwarted when she gave Professor Xavier enough time to recover from being attacked.

Mirage could use her empathic image casting to mentally soothe the savage beast with visions of something calming. Failing that, there's always the kinetic impact of Cannonball, or solar enhanced strength of Sunspot!

DC's Superboy combined both flight and strength to put Sabretooth down hard during a crossover battle with the Teen Titans in Unlimited Access #3! He won't have the tricks Deadpool used to ground Cannonball in New Mutants #98, or solar absorption that helped Iron Man win in Contest of Champions II #1.

Can the New Mutants stare down the intimidating sadism of Sabretooth? He's got the element of surprise, but also the bruises of recent battle. How will it all play out? Let's take a look...

The Tape: New Mutants Ranking: Sunspot (#155)

What Went Down...
Standing in horror amidst the wreckage of Xavier's decimated School for Gifted Youngsters, the New Mutants are alone and shell shocked.

As they consider the possibilities of who could've been responsible for such destruction, and who may've been present: Mirage detects the rising death glow of someone clinging precariously to life. Sunspot powers-up to investigate...

Sabretooth springs from beneath the massive piece of rubble lifted by Sunspot. He thanks his rescuer with the sharp side of his claws, raking them across his solar-powered face!

Seeing his friend in peril, Cannonball launches into action -- flying across the battlefield on a beeline towards the attacker!

The mutant missile collides with Sabretooth with unforgiving speed!

The force of the blow snaps Sabretooth backward, sending him tumbling head over heels back into the rubble. Face down and already exhausted, the fight leaves him as the New Mutants attempt to find out who Sabretooth is.

He introduces himself, gloating over the fruits of the Marauder's labour. It was their siege on the X-Men and X-Factor that led Sinister to destroy the mansion!

The taunts trail off -- seemingly Sabretooth's final words when Warlock detects his vital signs ceasing. Mirage senses no such passing, intuiting his inevitable survival through her "Valkyrie Gift" to see death coming, while the group resumes contemplating their present situation.

The Hammer...

Cannonball claims a pretty major scalp early in his career, even if Sabretooth was already pretty banged up by the X-mansion explosion.

Could it have gone any other way? It's hard to say. Despite his well earned and fearsome reputation; Sabretooth has a knack for being a bit of a punching bag -- especially during this period in the late eighties.

Even before the mansion was brought down, he'd been defeated with a psychic strike from Psylocke, in one of their first encounters. We also saw Mister Sinister brush him off pretty swiftly barely two years prior, in Uncanny X-Men #221.

Sabretooth is currently the lowest ranked character in the Fight Club Rankings at #961. The string of unanswered defeats doesn't seem adequately reflective of his stature, but it's difficult to deny a higher than average rate of losing.

Bad guys generally trend toward more losses than wins, and Sabretooth is one of the worst! He also has the added pressure of a healing factor, which means he can take a kicking and come back ticking. That gives writers license to knock him around. In fictional terms, it can also make him over confident and a bit sloppy. Similar can be said of Wolverine, who currently has a 52.5% win rate.

Appropriately enough: Wolverine is the only opponent on record that Sabretooth has managed to fight without losing. Even then, the Wolverine #50 tied result ended with both characters mortally wounded. He's decapitated and written off for several years by the end of the multi-issue struggle. Not a high point.

He seemingly died at the end of this battle, but as Mirage notes for the reader, death isn't coming for him. A pretty clear message that fans can look forward to more trouble from Sabretooth.

He will return in the pages of New Mutants, and I seem to remember something about Mister Sinister experimenting with Sabretooth clones, but that's a messy concept I'd rather not think about right now.

We shall simply commit this one to the books. It's a pretty obscure fight, easily overlooked in favour of two others, most notably the cover featured main event between Magneto and Sebastian Shaw. You can bet we'll be revisiting the issue to look more closely at both of the other battles at some time in the future.

If you want to read ahead to see the whole shebang for yourself you can find this issue collected in Epic Collection New Mutants: Curse of the Valkyrie. Use the Amazon purchase link provided and you'll get yourself a good deal and make sure Amazon supports the site at no extra cost to you!

You can discover more battles by following links throughout this post, or by diving into the Secret Archive, where featured fights are indexed by publisher, series, and issue number.

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Winner: Cannonball (w/ Sunspot)
#114 (+229) Cannonball
#153 (+2) Sunspot [+1 assist]
#961 (--) Sabretooth

ERADICATOR versus STEEL

Impact! (DC)
Where: Superman: The Man of Steel #24 When: August 1993 Why: Louise Simonson How: Jon Bogdanove

The Story So Far...
When Superman apparently died defeating the rampaging behemoth known as Doomsday -- four men were inspired to fill the void under the guise of a new Superman!

When the visor-wearing Superman known as "The Last Son of Krypton" comes to confront the "Man of Steel", they're interrupted by representatives of businessman Rex Leech, who claims to own trademark rights to the name "Superman". Attempts to issue a cease & desist draws a violent reaction from The Last Son, who ignites the papers with his mastery of energy!

To protect the innocent, Steel carries his challenger away from the server with hopes of reasoning with him -- but Eradicator takes them into a deadly nosedive towards Coast City! The impact crater will be their battleground as two of the reigning Supermen battle it out for ultimate supremacy!

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Eradicator 6 (Invincible)
Intelligence: Eradicator 5 (Professor)
Speed: Eradicator 6 (Mach-Speed)
Stamina: Draw 5 (Marathoner)
Agility: Draw 2 (Average)
Fighting: Draw 3 (Street Wise)
Energy: Eradicator 6 (Mass Destruction)
Total: Eradicator 33 (Super)

During Reign of the Supermen there were four heroes who claimed to fulfill the legacy of the thought-dead Superman. The veracity of each claim varied, with some more effectively passing themselves off as the genuine article.

Eradicator was dubbed "The Last Son of Krypton", and had the benefit of creating an artificially engineered body with direct genetic likeness and partial psychic memories of Superman. So convincing was this doppelganger that The Eradicator even came to briefly believe he was indeed the genuine article!

Despite sharing many characteristics with Superman himself; Eradicator's unique make-up processes and perceives energy to a far greater degree than ordinary Kryptonians. This required him to wear a visor to filter light, and meant he frequently projected energy blasts through his hands. Eradicator used these powers when an unconvinced Guy Gardner attacked him in Action Comics #688!

Steel was a literal "Man of Steel", wearing a gleaming suit of armor of his own design. John Henry Irons had been a construction worker when he was rescued by Superman from a potentially fatal fall. In another life, he used his gift for engineering to create deadly new weapons. Inspired to make amends, he forged his armor to bring an end to the gangs using his guns on the streets.

Eradicator is clearly more powerful than Steel, but the armor has been seen to withstand significant offensive attacks over the years! He endured the searing heat of Plasmus in Steel #28, and munitions fired by Metallo in Steel #21! Even stripped of his armor, John Henry Irons showed true grit when standing against a super-powered Lex Luthor, withstanding brutal punishment to win in 52 #42!

Steel will have to endure if he's going to have any hope of overcoming Eradicator's natural power advantage. We've seen Eradicator go toe-to-toe with a yellow power ring, and a shock & awe onslaught could put Steel down!

The Tape: Eradicator Ranking: Steel (#30)

What Went Down...
Steel and Eradicator glare intensely at one another, hunched to one knee in a crater freshly made of their impact. The self-proclaimed "Last Son of Krypton" makes his intensions clear: he will kill Steel if that's what it takes to remain unchallenged as the one true Superman.

The Eradicator follows-up on his promise with a powerful blast of energy!

The raw power overwhelms the armored chest of the Man of Steel -- launching him wildly across the crater! Tumbling to the ground offers no reprieve as Eradicator pours on the power, coldly walking toward his prey with arm outstretched.

Remarkably: Steel endures - absorbing the brutal onslaught long enough to be within reach of his unflinching adversary. He defiantly shouts "NO!" and grabs Eradicator by the wrist! If this man wishes to claim the mantle of Superman -- he will have to embody it!

With righteous anger Steel rises to smash his metallic fist across the Eradicator's face! He will not suffer the indignity of a pretender who would silence his adversaries by resorting to murder!

The Man of Steel continues his lesson - dishing out a four-hit combination of left to right punches as he recaps the ills of Eradicator's malice. Steel questions his next move -- shattering the visor that filters intense lightwaves from his eyes.

Even as pain assaults his sensitive vision, Eradicator contemplates the ease with which he could utterly destroy his mortal opponent. With every blow that twists and contorts his face, he wonders why Steel would so intently pursue a fight he cannot win. With this line of internal questioning - the verge of epiphany!

Steel holds his silent opponent by the cape, keeping Eradicator on his knees, as he defends the legacy of Superman, and the shield they've both chosen to adopt. Suddenly: sirens - as police surround the crater with squad cars and a helicopter to order the dueling super-powers to put their hands up.

Contemplating a need for human compassion in his actions; the Eradicator leaps into the air, bequeathing Metropolis to the "good hands" of Steel. He will instead pursue a distress call from Coast City, overheard on the police radio band.

The Hammer...
Over the past few years I've been reflecting upon the legacy of Death of Superman, and pondering its impact through the context of where comics are a couple of decades later. As time goes by, the criticisms that seemed excessive in the '90s and early 2000s now seem to take on greater prescience.

The "Death of Superman" was always easy to be conceptually opposed to, but even as the model for the pointless circus of death we now routinely endure in modern comics -- I find it difficult to look back with the same vitriol, or alarm.

Don't get me wrong. It disappoints me that the Death of Superman is becoming a recurring staple of the Superman mythology. It's not a story I feel should be revisited with any regularity at all. It was absurd to see Henry Cavill's live-action Superman die in only his second big screen outing. A second animated version of the Death of Superman, released last year, addresses weaknesses in the shallow 2007 version (Superman: Doomsday), but is otherwise unnecessary and counter-productive, lionizing the death of superheroes to the masses.

As Warner Bros releases Reign of the Supermen in follow-up, I find myself revisiting issues of the original 1993 crossover, and I think I'm starting to form a better understanding for why I don't regard that period with the same disdain of its many subsequent echoes. In short: it created more than it destroyed.

Superman: Man of Steel #24 makes a wonderful case for what makes Steel a great legacy character. Of the four heroes who attempted to fill the void left by Superman, he arguably had the least convincing claim. Eradicator, Cyborg Superman, and Superboy all had strong visual, genetic, and super-powered ties to the genuine article. Steel was just a guy in a suit of armor with a hammer.

Yet, as Eradicator learns through our featured fight: Steel better embodied the heroic spirit and determination of Superman than any of the others! His actions were innately heroic, selfless. He was everything Superman should inspire.

In other mediums and casual reference it's all too easy to think death was what was important about Death of Superman. It wasn't. In truth, Superman was only "dead" for around six or seven months. Just long enough to explore the ideas and world through four new facets of Superman's legacy. Characters that embellished, contributed to, and examined that world, for good and bad.

Superhero universes are at their best when they're alive and vibrant with all kinds of weird and wonderful characters poking around the corners. The four that came out of Reign of the Supermen have continued to be strong additions to the tapestry of the universe. A universe that should always have Superman, evergreen and true in spirit, at its pinnacle.

Long time readers will know all about my Steel fandom. That's certainly reflected in the rankings, which will now see Steel break into the Top 20! Yes, Eradicator presumed he could wipe Steel out, but in the end he left under duress, suffering the consequences of Steel's beat down. That's a win!

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Discover more battles and musings about these characters by following links throughout this post, tags at the bottom, or by diving into the Secret Archive! Every featured fight is indexed by publisher, series, and issue number! You can also get daily links inspired by the topics of the day by subscribing on Twitter and Facebook! A like, share, or retweet would be much appreciated!

Winner: Steel
#20 (+10) Steel
#551 (-126) Eradicator