SUPERMAN versus BLACK ADAM

Chapter Three (DC)
Where: DC Comics Presents #49 When: September 1982 Why: Roy Thomas & Paul Kupperberg How: Rich Buckler

The Story So Far...
Superman flies the night sky over Egyptian desert, listening carefully for a broadcast that spells certain doom!

Terrorists are threatening to blow the Aswan Dam unless the government surrenders to their political demands! Fortunately, The Man of Steel intervenes to send their nuclear device into deep space, and rescue the dam from breaching, but the explosion has set off tremors that threaten the nearby Temple of Abu Simbel!

A super-human feat to lift the ancient 13th Century landmark saves it from destruction, but despite Superman's best efforts, the building sits a few inches lower once returned to its modern resting place. That slight difference aligns the entrance with the rising sun, inadvertently opening a gateway that allows entry from an inter-dimensional interloper -- Black Adam!

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Draw 6 (Invincible)
Intelligence: Draw 4 (Tactician)
Speed: Superman 6 (Mach Speed)
Stamina: Draw 6 (Generator)
Agility: Draw 3 (Acrobat)
Fighting: Black Adam 7 (Living Weapon)
Energy: Superman 5 (Lasers)
Total: Black Adam 34 (Super)

Superman has challenged the power of SHAZAM many times over the years, but usually he's come up against his magic-powered equivalent: Captain Marvel!

Earth's mightiest mortal had to struggle to stand his ground against an Eclipso compromised Superman in Action Comics Annual #4 and Superman #216, but was much more in control while radicalized in Kingdom Come #4, and when sent into a tag team match alongside Hawkman, in Superman/Batman #4.

Black Adam represents a far deadlier opponent, wielding the power of Shazam as the dark-hearted ancient champion who fell from the Wizard's grace.

No example demonstrates Teth-Adam's corruption of Shazam's power greater than 52 #45. Having slaughtered the other Horsemen of Apokolips in 52 #44; Adam relentlessly pursued Azraeuz into the politically corrupt nation of Bialya, where he conducted a bloody rampage that cost the lives of millions!

Like Captain Marvel; Black Adam summons the power of a pantheon of gods & legends by speaking the Wizard's name. His magic lightning endows him with the stamina of Shu, the swiftness of Heru, the strength of Amon, the wisdom of Zehuti, the power of Aten, and the courage of Mehen.

It's debatable whether the magic of his abilities should have any real special effect on Superman. Kryptonians have no natural defenses against magic, but this should really be considered a vulnerability, rather than an innate weakness akin to Kryptonite. Black Adam was himself similarly defenseless against the vast magics of Ibis the Invincible in Power of Shazam #11.

We saw the uniquely invulnerable Superboy-Prime laugh off Black Adam's magic lightning when they came to blows in Infinite Crisis #6. Of course, the Kal-El of Earth Prime proved to be unique for a variety of reasons, matching Black Adam in his intensity and aggression while using incredible super-human strength.

We saw Black Adam earn a tactical victory against Captain Marvel in Hawkman #24, negating the stalemate of their physical strength. It might be speculated that Black Adam is the more powerful of the two, but to find out how he stacks up against Superman we should just take a look...

The Tape: Black Adam Ranking: Superman (#5)

What Went Down...
Standing atop Umpire Rock: Black Adam holds court with a car held aloft over an audience of helpless Manhattan police.

The would-be conqueror declares himself king of the world, but the destruction of effortlessly tossing the vehicle across the park draws the attention of a red-caped hero who can stop him -- Superman!

Black Adam instantly recognizes his challenger from a previous encounter and reveals the hero's unwitting hand in bringing him to this world.

The villain takes confidence from their previous battle -- and a plot to manipulate Earth's electric fields to prevent Captain Marvel following him and surviving the breach with his powers in tact. It's all Superman needs to hear to end the chit-chat and spring into action!

The Man of Steel launches himself wildly at his deadly new adversary, connecting with a stiff left to the jaw! Adam shakes it off immediately and fires back with a roundhouse punch that sends Superman hurtling through the air!

The spiteful villain uproots a nearby tree and lobs it like a spear, but Superman manages to duck and charges in to bury his fist deep in Adam's vile gut!

Superman gave his punch everything he had, but still Black Adam prevails, taking advantage of their close quarters to crack the Kryptonian with another hard right to the face!

As Superman drops to the ground, a young boy named Billy Batson rushes from the crowd of onlookers. He knows all about Black Adam's exploits from reading his Uncle's old comic books and can't stand to see him get the upper-hand.

The sudden sight of the familiar young man shocks Black Adam to distraction. For a moment he believes Captain Marvel has made it to this world, but the Billy Batson before him is too young to be the alter-ego of his arch-nemesis.

Seeing an opportunity to twist the indomitable will of his opponent, he snatches the boy by the collar and issues an ultimatum: Superman must remove himself from sight forever or the boy will suffer the consequences!

Unwilling to compromise the life of the child -- Superman leaps into the air and gives his word he won't attack in the city. Black Adam believes his conquest is all but assured. He under estimates the Man of Steel's resolve...

The Hammer...
It might look as if Black Adam has manipulated Superman into submission, but it all amounts to another inconclusive result. He may've had a slight advantage blow for blow, but both men were still in the fight when the action breaks.

Superman swings by the crowd on his way out to pick up Jimmy Olsen, keeping a watchful eye on Black Adam from afar with his x-ray vision.

Jimmy's journalistic instincts help connect Superman with the young Billy Batson, who eventually makes a break for it, and helps to inspire a plot that will bring Captain Marvel to their world using a similar method to Black Adam's!

This may be the only time Earth-One Billy Batson makes an appearance. Despite an extended dream sequence this issue, he never receives the magic lightning. Instead he'll be lost in the shuffle to various attempts by DC to utilize their Fawcett Comics acquisition. Captain Marvel persists on Earth-S for a time, but eventually joins the streamlined DC Universe and Justice League after Crisis on Infinite Earths.

It's all a little bit convoluted, but I enjoy seeing a crossover where the heroes are actually on the same page. It's become an underrated phenomenon!

Villains like Black Adam exist to be the dark shadow of their heroic counterparts. They function in dream match scenarios almost as well as two heroes who might be commonly compared -- without requiring any real compromises.

It might be fun to occasionally see what happens when Superman fights Hulk, but I think it quickly becomes much less interesting than those other, far less obvious encounters, like when Superman met Venom, or Batman met Scorpion.

The degradation of good-natured superheroes has been a real problem of the last decade or more of superhero in-fighting. It's kind of absurd. The world really doesn't need another evil version of Superman when you've got perfectly good stand-ins like General Zod or Bizarro ready to explore those ideas with lasting consequence. That's what they're there  for.

The conviction that Superman's moral fibre is somehow alienating, or in need of mitigating in a modern context, completely ignores its value as a defining character trait, and the fundamental honor of stories about good versus evil.

It might be interesting to explore characters who are morally complex, or grey, but that really shouldn't diminish our aspirations for good, or the conceivable existence of it. Superheroes remain at their core aspirational figures, and Superman should offer a blueprint to inspire us to be greater than ourselves.

Heroism doesn't have to be equal to simplicity, but obviously if, and when, you can routinely rely on characters like Superman or Captain Marvel to be pure bred heroes, it is very interesting to read about other archetypes, as well.

In DC Comics Presents #49 we see a Black Adam who is still very much a figure of villainy. His scheme is simply to rule the world: simplistic megalomania that later inspired a more nuanced take when he conquered Khandaq during Black Reign, and committed mass murder while pursing vengeance against Azraeuz.

The moral flexibility found in modern incarnations of Black Adam draws from his earliest appearance as a former champion chosen by Shazam.

Black Adam is ultimately a study in absolute power corrupting absolutely. A man of incredible means seduced to act on base desires of wrath, greed, and pride. In many ways he is the answer to what would happen if Captain Marvel went bad, but over the years he has become complicated with his own innate references, circumstances, and backstory. Which is all very interesting.

If you want to find more of Black Adam's exploits you should follow the links littered throughout this post! Secret Wars on Infinite Earths has featured well over 650 battles and ranked more than 950 characters! You can find 'em all indexed by publisher, series, and issue number in the Secret Archive!

If you'd like to read today's featured fight in its entirety, you can find it collected in Superman vs SHAZAM! and Shazam! A Celebration of 75 Years. Use the Amazon links provided to do your shopping and you'll not only get a good deal -- you'll also be supporting the site!

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Winner: Inconclusive (Draw)
#5 (--) Superman
#26 (+1) Black Adam
#50 (--) Billy Batson (Captain Marvel) [+1 assist]

SUPERGIRL versus REACTRON

Re-Enter: Reactron! (DC)
Where: The Daring New Adventures of Supergirl #9 When: July 1983 Why: Paul Kupperberg How: Carmine Infantino

The Story So Far...
The heroic Doom Patrol are on the path of a nuclear powered villain who shares a troubling history with team leader Tempest. The villainous Reactron is a soldier with absolutely no regard for the people he harms, and a power suit that grants him mastery over radiation!

Having escaped Doom Patrol in their earlier skirmish; Reactron is lured to Lake Shore University by an experimental nuclear reactor capable of enhancing his powers! It's the same campus attended by Linda Danvers -- student alter-ego of Supergirl!

Having watched the action from afar using her Kryptonian enhanced vision, Supergirl is ready to jump into action to put a stop to Reactron's meltdown! Does she have what it takes to stop the radioactive villain alone? Doom Patrol races to the scene with the fight already under way!

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Supergirl 6 (Invincible)
Intelligence: Draw 2 (Average)
Speed: Supergirl 5 (Super-Human)
Stamina: Reactron 6 (Generator)
Agility: Supergirl 4 (Gymnast)
Fighting: Reactron 4 (Trained)
Energy: Reactron 6 (Mass Destruction)


Every great superhero needs a rogues gallery to fight against, and today we're looking at one of the villains who's become a frequent foe for Supergirl!

If you know anything about the "Girl of Steel" it's that she escaped the grim fate of her home world Krypton to join cousin Kal-El on planet Earth. Enriched by the Milky Way's yellow sun, she possesses much the same powers and vulnerabilities as Superman: Flight, enhanced strength, speed, endurance, stamina, heat and x-ray vision, and super-breath.

We saw most of Supergirl's super-abilities on display when she battled a corrupt Mary Marvel in Final Crisis #6. We know she can hang with heavy-hitters like the Marvels - and she's going to have to, because her opponent is a fresh face brimming with newfound power in 1983!

Reactron was once Benjamin Krullen of the United States Army. An amoral soldier who gained an experimental hi-tech "StarSuit" that allows him to channel radioactive energy into concussive blasts. He would later be outfitted with a Gold Kryptonite heart, allowing him to sap the powers of Kryptonians, but that upgrade is a couple of decades away from our featured fight.

We're catching Reactron early in his villainous career -- just his second printed appearance! This is a pre-Crisis version whose design and powers are much less sophisticated -- but no less dangerous! He's double tough, can absorb and redirect radioactive energies, and has the potential to blow!

Strength and invulnerability give Supergirl a comfortable edge in this fight, but the exact effects of radiation on Kryptonians aren't always consistent.

We've seen Superman shrug off the routine nuclear energies of Atomic Skull [Superman/Batman #21], but in some stories, large doses of radiation have inflicted temporary ill effects on The Man of Steel.

We know the unique radiation signature of Kryptonite can sap Superman and Supergirl of their strength, and potentially even kill them. That's evident in the synthetic variety used by Batman [see: The Dark Knight Strikes Again #1, Justice League: The New Frontier Special #1], and the strange green glow emitted by the Kryptonite Man [see; Superman/Batman #23].

This early in his career, it might be too much to expect Reactron to be expert enough in his abilities to simulate Kryptonite. "The Living Reactor" can offensively direct large waves of radiation, though. Expelling as much radiation as possible might be his best key to victory, but Supergirl is the favourite here.

We find them in mid-battle. Let's see how it went down...

The Tape: Supergirl Ranking: Supergirl (#90)

What Went Down...

Supergirl clutches at Reactron's wrists as she flies at the irradiating menace! The living reactor is strong enough to break her hold, sending the girl of steel recoiling as he yanks his hands free!

This time it's Reactron's turn to recoil as Supergirl rockets back at him like a Kryptonian missile -- smacking him right in the mouth with a devastating left!

The villain can't help but be impressed by Supergirl's strength, but he survives the rough treatment with a smile on his face. She attempts to wipe it off by slipping behind him and locking in a Kryptonian bear hug!

As he did before, Reactron summons his nuclear powered strength and throws his arms open with explosive force! The radioactive counter once again throws Supergirl from her opponent! The experience sharpens her mind toward tactics.

While Supergirl ponders the advantage of taking the fight away from the cramped confines of their reactor arena -- Reactron turns up the heat with direct blasts of radiation!

Bathed in nuclear beams, Supergirl laughs off their effects as merely cleaning her costume. She makes a beeline for an improvised skylight and escapes the experimental reactor's control room, even as it begins to malfunction!

Reactron takes flight, pursuing his prey into the sky where she attempts to take advantage of maneuverability. She tries a ranged attack, firing X-ray vision in his direction, but Reactron's suit allows him to absorb the rays and redirect them as a concussive blast!

The dangers of the modern world begin to occur to Supergirl as she realizes Reactron's suit could convert everything from the sun's ultraviolet rays, to communication microwaves into an infinite power source! That's also when she remembers the perfect defense against such phenomena: lead!

While the Girl of Steel disappears a super-speed, Negative Woman and Tempest of The Doom Patrol arrive to keep Reactron company!

Reactron scoffs at Supergirl for seemingly fleeing, and laughs at the supposed threat of the arriving Doom Patrol. Tempest gives his former military chum a sobering jolt of kinetic energy, while Negative Woman attempts to short circuit him with her uncanny phasing powers!

The shock of being hurt sends Reactron heading for solid ground. His radiation blasts keep Negative Woman at arms length -- a threat that further provokes the ire of Tempest!

The former soldier keeps Reactron on the defensive with kinetic blasts as Supergirl returns overhead with a section of disused, lead sewage pipe!

She dumps the tube on top of Reactron and starts to reduce it to slag with intense heat vision when suddenly Tempest turns his kinetic blasts against her!

The Girl of Steel failed to realize encasing Reactron in lead just provokes him to turn up his powers -- creating an energy that eats through led with explosive results! Realizing her error, she snatches the lead encased villain and heads for the sky -- attempting to clear the populate college campus before he explodes!

The nuclear boom is big enough to shatter windows for miles around -- and knock Supergirl out cold! Her uncontrolled fall is stopped by the stretching energy form of Negative Woman, who carries her safely to the ground.

The rest of Doom Patrol arrive on the scene as Supergirl comes to, ready to learn the secret origin of her newest nemesis and prepare for round 2.

The Hammer...

It had thrills, spills, and special guests, and in the end the bad guy had to essentially blow himself up! The tactics weren't pretty, but the hammer falls in favour of villainous victor: Reactron!

As you can probably sense, the fight is far from finished. There's a follow-up confrontation within the pages of this very issue -- which also contains a Lois Lane back-up story! Wowee!

At some point in the future I'm sure we'll come back to see how the rematch went. Reactron may not be a first or second tier villain, but you know how I love those recurring bruisers. The kinds of bad guys with a simple gimmick, flashy costume, and deep seeded desire to do no good.

Reactron was actually one of the key inspirations for making this our final featured fight for January! I mentioned last month that I've been enjoying something of a Supergirl renaissance, thanks chiefly to the newish TV series.

One of the things I like most about Supergirl is its incorporation of comic book characters. It isn't completely faithful to the page, but it wields its references pretty well. The show reminds me of past efforts like Superboy, Lois & Clark, and maybe even the 1990 version of The Flash, but it combines its light entertainment disposition with much more frequent, heavy comic book content.

Case in point: Reactron was the first bona fide super-villain to appear in the series, making an enemy of Supergirl in the third episode.

It isn't the character from the comics. He presents more like a dark vision of Iron Man, clad in gun metal suit with a glowing red nuclear heart. This version of the character, an engineer named Ben Krull, is a smidge more sympathetic. He owes his powers (and deteriorating health) to a terrorist attack that was stopped by Superman, but not before it poisoned him, and killed his wife.

This Reactron leaves Metropolis to pursue Superman's newly revealed cousin, who's still finding her way as a hero in the early episodes. It's a quest for revenge - family for family. It nearly works, too! Supergirl gets her butt kicked in a hard hitting fight that ends with a silhouetted Man of Steel arriving just in time to rescue his kin as she falls unconscious!

Within the context of the show, the episode and its events are economic world building. I can't help but see the ties to the comic, though.

Reactron's first comic book appearance was the issue before the one we featured today [Daring New Adventures of Supergirl #8]. In the TV show, he's introduced as a pre-existing Superman villain, which functions a little bit like his shared backstory with Tempest. Who appears in our feature fight to rescue Supergirl with his greater knowledge of the threat -- kinda like Superman.

Just like the comic; TV's Supergirl figures she can beat the nuclear nemesis with lead. Things go a lot smoother in the show, though. Instead of encasing him in a lead pipe he explode out of, Melissa Benoist's character coats her hands in lead to prevent explosion when she rips the core out of Reactron's suit.

The comic book version only made it one issue further before his untimely demise. A death undone by the line-wide DC reboot of Crisis on Infinite Earths, which gave Reactron a second chance at life, and a role as recurring villain.

He appears much the same when he returns as a villain in Doom Patrol. I quite like the eventual suit revamp he gained, becoming a Supergirl villain once more after the character was reintroduced in the mid 2000s. With any luck we'll get to some of those chapters, as well.

In the mean time, we tick off a few more names on The Comic Book Fight Club "To Do" list! Last year I featured Robotman as one of our illustrious Heroes of the Week, inspired by the relaunch of Doom Patrol under DC's Young Animal imprint. I've been wanting to scratch the itch of DC's misfit surreal superheroes for quite some time. It's a modest start, but at least today's assist appearances by Negative Woman and Tempest have given us our first taste!

Looking for more obscurities from the DC Universe and beyond? Follow links throughout this post to find more on relevant topics, or dive in to the Secret Archive Index to browse past feature fights by publisher, series and issue!

Winner: Reactron
#302 (new) Reactron
#101 (-11) Supergirl
#510 (new) Tempest [+1 assist]
#511 (new) Negative Woman [+1 assist]