Sometimes problems can't be solved with talking and that's when we're lucky enough to see these fictional characters show off their glorious fighting abilities. Whether it's being amazingly talented in hand-to-hand or being blessed with a variety of powers, our favorite characters are often forced into hugely amusing slugfests. Every Friday we'll review the action from the new comics we've read and pick our three favorites. This week, we've got the Man of Steel going head-to-head with a classic villain, a super powered brawl between immensely powerful Marvel characters and a brand new Bat character fighting for his life.
Did your favorite battle not get a mention? Well, it's possible we didn't read that issue, so be sure to make suggestions in the official Best Battles Discussion Thread from now on. We review that before writing this weekly feature and do our best to get our hands on the issues suggested!
Superman vs. Lex Luthor (ACTION COMICS #21)
The age old feud between Superman and Lex Luthor reaches a brutal point in the latest issue of ACTION COMICS. Due to last issue's events, Superman begins the chapter in an already weakened state while dealing with Hybird. To help keep Hybrid down, Dr. Veritas teleports in a light device which generates red sun glares. Naturally, this will weaken Superman as well, but he refuses to move because he wants to save Hybrid as it breaks apart and individual people emerge from the creature. Unfortunately for him, Lex Luthor then decides to step in with his spiffy new armor and kicks off the fight with a sucker punch and an electric attack. Seeing as he's already far from being in top form, things aren't exactly looking up for our hero. Oh, and Tony S. Daniel's art for the win.
Seeing as he's in such a weak state, the cheap attack keeps Clark down. Before he can even get a little bit of a breather, Lex bombards the Man of Steel with missiles. As if assaulting Kal while he's down isn't enough, Lex also rants about how Clark's a scourge and shouldn't even be on the planet. Harsh, man. The villain then punches Supes into a wall and grabs him by the throat. Superman tries to use heat vision as a last resort, but he's far too weak to pull it off and Lex effortlessly smashes him down yet again.
Lex's arrogance then gets the better of him (surprise, surprise). While he's momentarily distracted, the Kryptonian has a moment to recover and he then lands a forceful uppercut against his target, knocking off the armored helmet. What follows is a thoroughly entertaining scuffle as Superman tags Lex with heat vision and Lex returns the favor with a projectile of his own. Superman still isn't in the best shape, so he grabs Lex and flies the duo out of the sewer and back to the surface. From there, he removes Lex's jetpack and uses it for a free boost into orbit. To gain his strength back, Clark heads to the sun and soaks in those delicious rays. Feeling much better, the hero launches back to Earth and says "hello" to Lex with his fists. Needless to say, it promptly ends the fight.
And speaking of Superman, I just want to give you a friendly reminder that MAN OF STEEL IS ONLY A WEEK AWAY!!!
Thor, Hyperion and Iron Man vs. Terminus and High Evolutionary (AVENGERS #13)
High Evolutionary, you've got some serious nerve stealing children from the Avengers while they're in the Savage Land -- especially when their roster includes Hyperion, the all-mighty Hawkeye and Thor! We know the character loves experimenting, but what exactly does Herbert want with these kids? The Avengers hunt him down and, unfortunately for them, he has Terminus on his side. The massive being makes ridiculously short work of Iron Man and destroys him in a single motion. Fret not, Tony's not really in the armor. It's just like Iron Man 3, except in this case there's something actually powerful wrecking the armor. I love the movie, but come on, they were dropping like flies. Anyway, back to comics.
To call Hyperion "super pissed" over Herbert stealing the kids would be an understatement. The guy is so livid he rips off High Evolutionary's arm while they're merely chatting. The villain then transforms the wounded limb into a projectile and blasts Hyperion away. But, seeing as he's crazy powerful and all that, Hyperion then sends a blast of his own back at the villain. It's then the High Evolutionary revealed why he stole the younglings: to power Terminus.
Sadly, Thor is oblivious to the fact his foe is also serving as a house for the very children he's trying to save. After suffering a punch from the titan, the Asgardian creates a massive storm and hopes to destroy his target with its raw power. Right before the devastating volley of lightning strikes crash down on the giant, Hyperion swoops in, strikes into the being's head, grabs the children, and takes them to safety. Yeah, it's rather epic.
Seeing powerful beings go at it like this is always good fun, but in this case, it's Mike Deodato's art which makes it truly special.
Batwing vs. Lion-Mane (BATWING #21)
Luke Fox begins the latest issue of BATWING in a terrible spot against the deadly (yet ridiculous looking) Lion-Mane. While the foe has massively intimidating physical stats and wants to literally eat Batwing, Luke's got technology and skill on his side... and hey, that's served Bruce Wayne quite well over the years, hasn't it? While it seems like the bad guy is going to win right from the get-go, Batwing shows he's sporting quite a taser in his armor.
The electric attack and fist to the face doesn't drop his opponent, so Luke tests out another weapon: a super powerful pepper spray. It successfully annoys his enemy for the first few moments, but after that it's nothing but a hindrance. If anything, it's managed to make Lion-Mane even angrier and the villain begins to wreck the hero. He kicks it off with a vicious uppercut and then humiliates the rookie hero by smashing him around a bit. Luckily for Luke, he's sporting some sturdy armor and recovers by tossing a few batarangs into the beast and follows up with this bloody strike.
Despite the variety of attacks, Lion-Mane just won't stay down for the count. He eventually overcomes Fox and, just like the beginning, has victory within his grasp. But, like all true villains, he babbles instead of taking action and it lets Batwing do something to turn the tide: call in his batmobile! Lion-Mane is one tough creature, but a vehicle like that smashing into his back and then pounding him into a wall will make him see stars... or whatever it is lion-centaur dudes see when they're knocked out.
I may not be able to take Lion-Mane seriously (can you honestly blame me?), but his scene after this fight is downright savage. You're kind of awesome, Lion-Mane -- just not awesome looking.
Honorable Mentions
- Wonder Woman's hands vs. General's head (INJUSTICE: GODS AMONG US #21)
- Daredevil vs. Muggers (DAREDEVIL: DARK NIGHTS #1)
- Hulk vs. Ultimate Avengers (THE ULTIMATES #25)
- Apex vs. Nico & X-23 (AVENGERS ARENA #10)
- Lion-Mane vs. Marabunta (BATWING #21)
- Katharsis vs. Police (THE MOVEMENT #2)
Gregg Katzman is a freelance writer for Comic Vine and IGN Entertainment. This is the part where he shamelessly plugs his Google+ and Twitter page in hopes of getting a new follower or two.