Batman VS. Superman

VOICE OVER: Dan Paradis
Script written by Max Lett.

An alien from a dead planet who's able to perform superhuman feats versus an orphan with some control issues. In this video, pits the Man of Steel against the Dark Knight to see which superhero comes out on top. On our Top 10 DC Superheroes list, Batman triumphed, while Superman, due to his iconic status, was our winner on our Top 10 Superheroes of all time list. For this showdown, we're evaluating these superheroes on specific categories to see how well they measure up.

Special thanks to our users ibriers 1, viliguns, Andrew A. Dennison, Mattyhull1 and Maher Monzer for submitting the idea on our Suggestions Page at WatchMojo.comsuggest

Script written by Max Lett.

An alien from a dead planet who’s able to perform superhuman feats versus an orphan with some control issues. Welcome to WatchMojo.com, and today we’ll be pitting the Man of Steel against the Dark Knight to see which superhero comes out on top.

On our Top 10 DC Superheroes list, Batman triumphed, while Superman, due to his iconic status, was our winner on our Top 10 Superheroes of all time list. For this showdown, we’re evaluating these superheroes on specific categories to see how well they measure up against each other.

Round 1: Origin and Motivation

In this corner, we have the only son of wealthy socialites Thomas and Martha Wayne. Very much loved by his parents and raised to believe in the good of mankind and society, Bruce’s life was irrevocably changed the night his parents were murdered in front of his eyes. From that day forward, he swore to fight the criminal element in Gotham City, eventually taking on the mantle of the Batman.

In the other corner, we have young Kal-El, also an only child and the son of Lara and Jor-El, the foremost scientist on the planet Krypton. Kal-El’s life was irrevocably changed when his father rightly predicted the destruction of their planet and nobody listened. Sent to Earth like some kind of contemporary Moses, Kal is adopted by Jonathan and Martha Kent, who name him Clark Kent and teach him good ol’ American values and a strong sense of justice.

Though both were orphans destined for greatness, this round goes to young Kal-El because, well, he’s a super-powered alien from another planet.

WINNER: Superman 1 / Batman 0

Round 2: Alter Ego

When you’re only human, fighting crime can take its toll, so you will need some off time to recharge your batteries. No one does it quite as well as billionaire playboy Bruce Wayne. Generally unsatisfied unless he’s sending someone to the dentist for a new set of teeth, Bruce has to pretend to enjoy the simpler pleasures of life as a wealthy socialite - after all, dating supermodels and driving extremely expensive cars can be pretty tedious - but Bruce takes it all in stride.

Kal-El doesn’t want to draw too much attention to himself when he isn’t saving the world from monstrous alien invaders. So he took a job as a humble newspaper reporter for the Daily Planet. As Clark Kent, he is able to maintain a relatively low-key lifestyle and a simple-but-effective alter ego. And even though he hasn’t put much effort into it, people still haven’t figured it out after all this time; or maybe they’re just pretending not to notice the uncanny resemblance.

Clark Kent might be fooling everybody around him, but Bruce Wayne is doing it in style and more believably so, and as such, he takes this round.

WINNER: Superman 1 / Batman 1

Round 3: Sidekicks and Allies

Over the years, Batman has racked up a pretty decent cast of ancillary characters to assist him at the drop of a hat. Who knows how many different Robins there have been! And that’s excluding the Batgirls, Batwomen, Batboys and whoever else has chosen to risk their lives to fight alongside the coolest superhero in the DC Universe. While not all of their careers have ended well, all of them have sworn undying loyalty to the caped crusader.

Ironically enough, The Last Son of Krypton is more of a lone wolf, choosing to fight crime solo most of the time. Every now and then, he is joined by the likes of Jimmy Olsen or Krypto the Superdog when he was younger, but let’s face it, a sidekick would only slow someone with that kind of power down.

Bats takes this round with a TKO!

WINNER: Superman 1 / Batman 2

Round 4: Crime Fighting

When it comes to fighting crime, Bruce Wayne as Batman has had to develop all kinds of skills and tricks to keep the streets clean. He is a master of many different martial arts, both deadly and defensive, has a genius level intellect, incredible deductive capacities AND possesses a super advanced variety of gadgets, weapons and vehicles. With that kind of gear and know-how, criminals are dealing with much more than they bargained for when they face off with the Dark Knight.

When it comes to Superman, it’d be easier to list the powers he doesn’t have instead of the ones he does. Let’s take a look at the broader list: Flight, Super-Strength, Heat Vision, Super-Breath, Super-Hearing and general invulnerability are only some of things Kal-El can do. That isn’t including his super-powered intellect, and a whole bunch of sub-sets to the bigger powers. But let’s just say Supes doesn’t want to punch you into oblivion; let’s say he just wants you to stop using your powers for evil. This is exactly what he does in the animated film “Superman vs. The Elite.” Instead of killing off the villain, the Man of Steel uses his heat vision to lobotomize the nefarious Manchester Black, which takes away his powers.

Sorry Bats, but with that many powers at his disposal, Superman could put away hundreds of baddies before you even left the mansion.

WINNER: Superman 2 / Batman 2

Round 5: Rogues Gallery

It’s often said that a good villain is what really makes the hero, and never has that been truer than for the World’s Greatest Detective. From The Riddler to Two-Face and everyone in between, Batman has had to face external representations of what he could have been if things were different. Every one of his enemies represents him in one way or the other and his ultimate antagonist is no exception; The Joker is Batman’s opposite number, spreading chaos and terror wherever he goes while Bats attempts to keep order and safety in Gotham.

If having an opposite number makes the hero interesting, then Superman’s arch-villains have a lot to live up to. They have to be a strong as he is or else as dastardly as he is good. Lex Luthor is a great example of the latter as he schemes and plans his way to riches and notoriety all while trying to destroy the meddlesome Kryptonian. Other baddies that have met the Man of Tomorrow’s challenge include Doomsday, whose strength helped him kill Superman – for a time.

Sorry Supes, your bad guys maybe stronger, but Batman’s go deeper. This round goes to the Dark Knight.

WINNER: Superman 2 / Batman 3

By a score of 3 to 2, the winner is Batman. Maybe Superman could incinerate Bats in the time it takes to put on a cowl, but in a popularity contest, we have to go with the clear winner.

Was our verdict like kryptonite to you? Be sure to debate in the comments and subscribe to WatchMojo.com for more entertaining versus battles.