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Thanos vs Darkseid: When Marvel And DC Crossed Over In Comic History

Image March 16, 2021 Manic Exorcism 1 Comment

It might shock many fans to know that there is canon evidence of Thanos and Darkseid meeting in a battle to the death.

It’s a story of worlds colliding and two universes spilling one into another. The comic powerhouses of Marvel and DC gave fans one helluva’n epic crossover. One with plenty of victories on both sides, and, let’s be honest, the one thing fans needed to know: who would win in a fight, Thanos or Darkseid?

So we’re going to take a look at both characters, study their abilities and accomplishments, then prove to be proper geeks and wager which one will walk away victor over the other.

Darkseid

In 1970 Darkseid is revealed to the world of comics and ferociously became a menacing threat.

This 8-foot tall mastermind rules from the Hell-existence of Apokolips and is an atrocity against all living things.

His divine power has proven to be the main scourge against those who oppose him and few have ever stood before him and lived to tell about it.

Powers Include:

Omega beams – red laser beams that cut across matter and end it by a mere touch.

It takes a god to meet godlike strength though and Superman is one of the few who has withstood a powerful blast from one of Darkseid’s Omega Beams.

Anti Life Equation – the devastating ability to control sentient life. A domination of the will.

“Emotional turmoil breaks the dikes of the mind– And releases the flood in which we must fish, Desaad! Perhaps in this very city is the mind which will yield the Anti-Life Equation! The ability to control all free will!” Darkseid
– DC Fandom

Imperial strength – Small example, he crushed a Green Lantern ring with his bare fist. Something thought to be impossible to do. He wields exceeding might and a cunning mind to match his brute power

More powers – Immortality, the power to read minds and control them, and a fondness for breaking people’s souls. Not to mention he’s a genius and has turned thousands of worlds to ash heaps.

He’s easily taken down the Justice League before, but, rather than killing them he’d much rather corrupt them, destroy their will rather than their bodies, and force his once-enemies to serve under his throne.

Not to mention that in his infancy he battled Olympian Gods, the full military might of Atlantis, and taken on the Amazons in their prime. All on his own I might add.

And did he break a sweat? Fuck no!

Origins

He is a descendent of the Old Gods, an ancient order perhaps older than time, an order he resented. By manipulation and lies, he sat back and allowed his own kind to decimate themselves while he rode in to drain and store up their energies for his own.

He forsook his given name, Uxas, and retitled himself Darkseid. Feeling now superior in his newfound might and majesty he took on his father, Yuga Khan, slew him in battle, and ended the ancient order, then proclaimed himself a New God.

As aforementioned, he rules from Apokolips, an industrial Hell-scape planet, a thriving world of agony serving as a manifestation of its Master’s dark imagination.

He also possesses incredible powers of regeneration which grants him the gift of rebirth. He cannot be killed and will come back again, and again.

He is Satan in the mythos of DC and to battle the Devil one needs a Messiah, Kal-El.

And Superman has been able to hurt and drive Darkseid back. Though it did take the whole Justice League to stop the daemonic will of the New God.

By his hands alone planets have crumbled. Hundreds of thousands of planets have been left in ruin in his wake. He is relentless in pursuit of his goals as well as in battle. Perhaps his most deadly weapon is in fact his mind.

Thanos

Three years after the comic world met Darkseid, Thanos was introduced in Marvel Comics. He first appeared in The Invincible Iron Man # 55 of February 1973. To be fair, to those who say Darkseid is a copy of Thanos, the facts are the other way around.

The ‘90s is when Thanos’s infamy took off (primarily due to Infinity Gauntlet 1991) and is how the character is now known among comic fans. I say comic fans because most people today know the Mad Titan thankfully due to the highly successful MCU where he’s served as the proverbial thorn in the Avengers’ side.

Marvel Studios spent ten years building the character’s infamy throughout their Avengers films. The end result was seen in Avengers: End Game where the whole Marvel Cinematicverse came together to fight Thanos and his army in a climatic battle.

Thanos is 6 feet tall and purple-skinned with a gnarly-looking chin. He is a descendent of the Eternals and a Titan. Due to a mutation in his genes (due to his lineage) he not only has the powers of an Eternal but to a magnified degree.

I might also point out that (at least in his early days) he was dating Death herself. It might shock modern Marvel fans to learn that originally the Infinity War was, in part, a plan Thanos made in order to impress Death. Yup, he was a simp.

Abilities:

He has super stamina and speed, plus a cool ability to absorb and master cosmic energy. He can manipulate matter itself and weaponize it to lethal effect. He is a master tactician. He is a warlord, trained by the best warmasters on his homeworld of Titan.

He’s easily beaten both Thor and Odin (gods), defeated a raging Hulk, and, took a double-fisted stab from Wolverine’s blades then shook it off as though it was nothing. He’s also punched Captain America’s shield into smithereens. And in the movie, threw a fucking moon at Iron Man.

That shit’s hardcore.

He’s fought every major Marvel super hero you can name and remained on his feet while they each lay broken under his boots.

Origins And Accomplishments:

He was born on Saturn’s moon Titan, and, as aforementioned, is a descendent of Eternals.

He led a mass genocide against his own race, slaughtering his own kind, and left Titan a wasted moon, or planet (something hinted at in Avengers: Infinity War) if you prefer, all just to impress the love of his life, Mistress Death.

He’s also known for murdering his own offspring, because what a nice guy.

Oh Snap

What he’s most known for today – thanks to the cinematic interpretation of the character – is zealously gathering the Infinity Stones.

Or, to be more specific, using the infamous Infinity Gauntlet to snap away half the galaxy.

However, the events of Infinity Gauntlet (what Avengers: Infinity War/End Game are based off of) differ greatly as far as comic and film are both concerned.

Because…

Well, you see, there was this girl…

Yup, Thanos had a crush on (possibly) the most powerful being in the universe. That being Mistress Death, as in Death. No not Lady Death, but you get the picture. Lady Death is still my crush.

Unlike his galactic goals in the Avengers films, Thanos was out to impress that special lady in his life.

To the point where he’s literally on his knees groveling at her feet. It’s actually really awkward at times.

But being brought back from the dead must do that to a guy. Mistress Death did seek Thanos out from among the dead and brought him back for a specific purpose.

Mistress Death knew there were more living beings across the universe than it could handle and so chose Thanos to do her dirty work. In return he worshipped her. He gladly would have been her sub.

It’s something that’s not talked about today, but, and shockingly I say this, before Anakin Skywalker was gushing over Padme, Thanos was desperate to get the slightest smirk of recognition from Death.

It almost plays out like she’s the hot goth chick who couldn’t care less. And I’m dead serious this is how the comics canon went.

She uses him as her tool to vanquish half the sentient life across the universe. And he does so faithfully, almost as if on a whim.

Could you imagine if they went in that direction for the cinematic universe?

Infinity’s Finale

Unlike the events of the film Avengers: Infinity War or End Game, Thanos’s master plan -to snap away most life across the cosmos – is undone by Adam Warlock.

Cinematically Infinity War and End Game largely adapt Infinity Gauntlet, but what I love more about the actual comic run is the sheer number of Marvel heroes present for the fight.

Primarily, the two most important characters, both Adam Warlock and the Silver Surfer, are, sadly, largely absent from the films. And they’re both paramount to the story.

Not to mention Galactus’ role as well as his fellow Cosmic Beings. Speaking of which, Silver Surfer tackles Thanos on a cosmic level while Warlock defeats the Mad Titan from the heart of the Infinity Gauntlet itself – the Soul Stone.

We’re even given a cool glance into the Soul Realm where Warlock operates.

From within the Soul Stone Warlock discovers a deeply buried truth about Thanos – he doesn’t feel worthy of unlimited power. Because of this Thanos purposely sets up scenarios where he will be defeated just as he’s enjoying the fruit of his labors.

That alone chips away at his super villain rights.

Unlike Palpatine from Star Wars, Jafar from Aladdin, Magneto from X-Men, or Darkseid in DC, Thanos knows he is unworthy of limitless power and allows himself to be constantly thwarted by mortals time and time again.

And therein could be the emotional appeal with his fans. The guy just wants the girl he loves to recognize his devotion. And despite all of his cunning and hard work he is a ‘man’ with self-doubt. He’s kind of just as fucked up as the rest of us.

I may offend people now with what I’m about to say, but there are other villains in Marvel comics I’ve liked more than Thanos. Such as Galactus who just roams around the universe looking for planets to devour. I always thought that concept was scary on a Lovecraftian level.

Like imagine waking up one day and seeing a massive face filling the whole sky as Galactus prepares to eat Earth.

Thanos held godhood in his grip, he masterfully took down his enemies, wiped his ass with the Avengers, and basically called the universe a big bowl of bull fuck. He even went so far to become Eternity himself but then ‘conveniently’ lost the all-powerful Infinity Gauntlet to his daughter Nebula who then restored the galaxy back to normal.

Long story short Warlock ends up with the IG and promises to govern creation as a benign god.

Thanos held omnipotence but inadvertently gave it all up.

It’s worth noting that Thanos was once defeated by Squirrel Girl. I had to look this one up too because I had no clue who the Hell she was. I was too busy reading Uncanny X-Men and McFarlane’s Spider-Man run I guess. But she has a bushy tail and can talk to squirrels. Her victory over Thanos is listed as ‘ambiguous.’ Well now I wanna see a movie about this fight!

A Mad Titan vs. The New God

Cinematically Thanos takes the win here. As of yet we haven’t seen Darkseid reveal all the Hell of Apokolips upon audiences. Not yet. A thing, thanks to Zack Snyder, will be remedied very soon in upcoming Justice League.

So Thanos will have some cinematic competition soon (March 18, 2021).

Physically, Darkseid stands two-feet taller than Thanos but in pure strength, it would be a very brutal, and, possibly, equal fight. However, Darkseid is without morals and has conquered multiverses in his evil pursuits.

Also, Darkseid’s fetish is to destroy his foes’ souls. So I could see Darkseid targeting Mistress Death, turning her to his side by using the Anti Life Equation, and then punching her face off and make Thanos wear her bones like a necklace.

And Darkseid has no self-doubts. He knows he is worthy to rule everything and will not stop until its all his.

Unlike the devastation wrought by a snap of Thanos’s fingers, the cataclysms brought about by Darkseid cannot be undone. He will not relinquish power or put himself in a position to be compromised.

It would be a battle of intellect between two genius strategists too. Both have commanded legions of armies across the galaxy. However, going by their individual philosophies alone Thanos seeks to bring harmony to the galaxy by means of genocide. Darkseid seeks to rule it all.

Ok enough speculation. What actually happened when the two crossed over?!

When the two finally came face to face the question was answered: who would win in a fight?

Thanos approached the battle with respectful threat. Darkseid, however, dropped all candor, called Thanos a pale imitation of himself (BURN) and proceeded to tear the Infinity Gauntlet off Thanos’s arm – hand included in gauntlet. And just like that, the battle was over.

Now holding the power of the coveted Infinity Gauntlet Darkseid, having no need or use for it at all, tosses it aside. After all, he’s managed to annihilate over half the multiverse without the aid of mystical and cosmic stones.

Also, since the gauntlet was made in the Marvel universe it was purely useless in DC’s universe. Because of reasons.

When the story of Marvel vs DC was being planned out publishers from both sides made decisions for how certain battles would conclude. But they also allowed fans to determine the outcome of certain battles as well.

So this battle left some fans cheering while others were pissed.

Is this controversial? Oh, fuck yes, I know it is. And knowing its potential divisiveness was not lost on me. However, this is an event from our past, a moment many fans wanted to see, a crossover that needed to happen.

Fan of Both Sides

I grew up reading Marvel for the most part. With Batman and Superman being the exceptions of course.

As result, I got to know (and love) lots of Marvel’s rogues and my absolute favorites were always Magneto, Dr. Doom, Venom, Carnage, Apocalypse, Mephisto, Galactus, Scorpion, Electro…and this could go on and on.

Thanos, as far as the comics are concerned, just never really impressed me much. I admit I’m more of a fan of his cinematic portrayal than the ‘90s era comic run. And the dude was beaten by Squirrel Girl. That’s just hilarious.

As I got older I began reading more DC and thanks to Watchmen, Killing Joke, Dark Knight Returns, and Death of Superman enough of my interest was piqued that I’m still collecting comics today.

I’m more of a retro Marvel fan, meaning my favorite era is certainly the ‘90s when Jim Lee and Todd McFarlane were part of the artistic team.

Fuck sake McFarlane made Lizard and Hobgoblin Hellishly awesome! Not to mention Venom!

As a fan, I’ve seen Thanos reinvented on the silver screen and I applaud it. Amazing stuff, seeing the Avengers assemble and come to life to battle the Mad Titan was a treat!

But, also, as a fan, I cannot wait to see Snyder’s original vision of the Justice League finally take off and bring me Darkseid at long last!

It’s an event I’ve waited for for a very long time.

Our heroes are now brought to life! And with them a host of challenging super villains. Whatever side you find yourself on don’t let fandom divide us. We’re a family and just as our comic publishers crossed over for fun there’s nothing wrong with loving both sides or having a side you favor.

For goodness sake Thanos got beaten by Squirrel Girl! I just found out about that and holy shit I love it. It’s little things like that that keep me smiling.

It’s a mean world out there and if heroes taught us anything it’s to stand (strong) together.

Editorials

The BATMAN (’89) Teaser – The Coolest Movie Reveal Of Our Generation

Image March 5, 2021 Manic Exorcism 1 Comment

You Changed Things. Forever. – Joker, The Dark Knight

There was once an age when superhero movies were as rare as Bigfoot sightings. As a matter of fact, you’d be more likely to take a bareback ride drunkenly over a rainbow astride a three-headed unicorn than hope to see any comic-book adaptation hit the theaters back when we were kids.

The iconic Superman (1978) movie by Dick Donner (Goonies, The Omen) was the only example of how one could actually work successfully.

But that was back when our parents were young and we’d already watched all the Superman movies to death. Even the stupid ones.

Ah Hell, I was so starved for comic book movies I even made myself like the Supergirl one. Hmm…looking back on it I guess Swamp Thing was a comic adaptation too. But Uncle Wes’s boggy hero was more like a fun monster film. No iconic caped heroes or cities to save from evil.

Then – like a bat out of Hell – came this teaser that dropped like a glowing nuke straight into our backyards!

No one was ready. No one had a single god damn clue this was even in the making. Our miniscule lives were about to change forever because out of nowhere rumors of a Batman movie surfaced and a storm of interest grew quickly into a hurricane of excitement!

Oh but then people saw the trailer and – as far as fandom was concerned – there was no going back.

BATMAN, Michael Keaton, Jack Nicholson, 1989, image via Warner Bros.

We were entering a whole new era of gods and monsters, one of capes and imagination grander than we thought could ever be possible! Of heroes and villains so delightfully dastardly that we couldn’t help but fall in love with them.

The Bat was on his way and Batmania was on the rise!

It’s a fever that persists to this very day as fans eagerly await Snyder’s cut of the Justice League and the upcoming The Batman.

The Teaser Itself!

I shit you not once people found out a certain movie playing had Batman in its opening trailers they bought tickets just to go watch the trailer. Then they’d walk out of the cinema.

Some did it more than once because the hype surrounding this film was that imperial. It’s not like we had YouTube back then, and, supposing we did, it would have taken three weeks just to upload a minute-long teaser thanks to dial-up. But you better bet your ass we would have waited those three weeks (gladly) just to watch this thing!

Cinemas were swarmed by fans just to get the tiniest glimpse of the Dark Knight of Gotham and the Clown Prince of Crime.

Mainly because this was a Batman more akin to the Alan Moore and Frank Miller comics than to the campy fun of Adam West and Ceaser Romero. Gone now was the ‘70s colorful glow of Gotham and in its place was a dingy capital of ‘80s angst and grit.

When Batman hit someone you didn’t need a great big ‘BAM’ to fly at your face to feel it. And the Batmobile – Oh my God still the sexiest damn model ever – roared down the glistening streets of Gotham as the Bat trailed down armed cars of the Joker’s crew!

This was a Batman like nothing we’d ever seen before.

The teaser introduced us to the new and improved (Joker products! HAHAHAHAHAHA) Batman. Nothing against the Adam West show, but this time around it felt like Batman was aimed towards the big kids. The cool crowd.

Batman’s teaser is the criteria of how movie trailers should be handled. It gave just enough glimpses to light a fire in our chests. Then it stoked the flames until we could hardly stand it.

We see Bruce Wayne in his everyday (boring) life, but then we see the Bat himself! He’s not a colorful and smiling do-gooder, but a dark and dangerous threat to the underbelly of Gotham’s criminal world. When Batman appears the bad guys are terrified.

Then Batman enters a scene by smashing his way through a god damn ceiling window! By this point fans were cheering!

The teaser culminates with Nicholson’s Joker (in full and glorious makeup) threatening, “Wait until they get a load of me” and ends on an image of the Batman while Joker laughs that incredible laugh.

Were people ready to see this movie? Does Jason hack up horny pot heads at Camp Blood? Hell to the fucking YES people were ready to see this movie!

It showed fans just enough to hype us all up without giving away the whole movie, something too many modern teasers/trailers have not learned from.

Thanks to this teaser people didn’t want to see this movie. Oh no, that’s way too simple. People had to go see it. Like a spiritual craving, people rushed in droves to watch this film and came out of cinemas changed. They had to see it again, and again and with all their friends too.

I don’t need to tell you about Batman’s success. It’s history now. Without it though I highly doubt we would have Nolan’s triumphant Dark Knight Trilogy.

Batman, like Superman before it, proved the success these movies could enjoy if handled with passion and faithfulness to the material. The reason why there’s an MCU is because of the triumph of DC’s cinematic previous endeavors.

No one thought Batman (BOP, BAM, SLAP!) could be the top-selling movie of any year, but it was. It was even hailed the movie of the decade.

No one thought a comic book adaptation could be any kind of success. The Bat proved his critics wrong.

And the Batman remains triumphant to this day as his mythos is further explored and expanded upon for whole new generations.

For more Batman nostalgia be sure to click here for wicked moments that define the Joker’s life of crime and carnage!

Editorials

The Death Of Superman – Retrospective of The Impact A Comic Had On Culture!

Image March 2, 2021 Manic Exorcism Leave a comment

The Man of Steel Was Going To Die(?)

I have this vivid memory of it. I was outside playing in the backyard when my mom came rushing out to find me. ‘They’re going to kill Superman,’ she said. ‘It’s on the news. Hurry up and come see.’

I dropped my toys and flew indoors. I hadn’t missed anything, and, yup, it was all over the news. Superman was going to die.

That’s all I got from the report and something inside me grew very sad. Images of Christopher Reeves and a flowing red cape captivated my young imagination. In one instance I could see the world’s greatest superhero soaring across the sky as people clapped and cheered. The next, a silent coffin with the Last Son of Krypton resting forevermore.

It was sobering. No, it was something more than that, and even still to this day, and though I’m a writer, I still cannot correctly identify what it was I felt. I was young and my world was safe. I had my imagination that was brought to life with my love of heroes, monsters, and the villains they had to face. In the end, the heroes always won, but, if Superman could die that meant no one was safe any more.

It meant life was fragile if even the strongest among us could die.

How Can You Kill Superman?

I guess that’s the billion-dollar question, isn’t it? A mystery Lex Luthor and his ilk have been trying to crack since the Golden Age of comics. Nothing worked though. Despite all the masterful cunning, the tireless strategies, the weapons, the traps, and the attempts Superman always pulled through. He was the shining example to all kids that good would always win the day.

Superman enjoyed a lifetime of success.

In the earliest days, George Reeves stunned young audiences as he donned a cape and brought Superman from the comic pages to serial episodes. Then, decades later, another Reeves would put on the cape and made a whole new generation of fans believe a man could fly with Dick Donner’s cinematic triumph, Superman! The first successful superhero movie and the standard by which all other comic adaptations would learn from.

Comic books, radio shows, TV specials, and the big screen all proved that Kal-El was unstoppable. Nothing could hold him back, no bar could block him, and no one stood a chance at defeating him.

Or so we all thought. Superman wasn’t even my favorite superhero, but I did love him, even if I was more of a fan of the Bat of Gotham. But with the news of Superman’s coming end, I finally started buying his comics. I could not miss this!

Making the Kryptonian Human

Superman was enjoying a revival of interest among fans between the ‘80s and ‘90s. Writers at DC decided to make Superman a more relatable character, someone who grew up among us and deeply related to us in every way. This was not just an alien from far away. But a country boy from Kansas. The trick was making the character stay true to his dual identities while being honest with the people he loved.

The first – and frankly biggest step made by the character throughout his entire legacy – was when Clark Kent, mild-mannered, soft-spoken, and loveable dork finally revealed his secret identity to the love of his life, Lois Lane. That alone was huge news and there would be no going back from it.

This, in turn, led the writing team to prepare for the only logical next step in Superman’s life – his wedding day. After Lois Lane learned Clark’s identity the two were even closer than ever before. She could finally open up and admit her love for both men she loved, Superman and Clark, who, lucky for her, were the exact same person.

The dual nature of Clark Kent and Kal-El – one of the fundamental principles of the character since the very beginning – was at long last being reconsidered and, as Superman allowed people to get closer to him, the façade was being lowered and Superman was becoming more personable, more human.

He was becoming much more relatable and far more vulnerable than he’d ever been for decades.

Clark could not go on lying to the woman he loved and trusting her with the truth of his identity made the two inseparable. And readers were drawn to the character like never before.

So plans for the wedding were laid in place. It was to be a week-to-week storyline that would fill an entire year. Things were looking good until the producers of the then hit TV show, Lois and Clark, met with the DC writing team and put a halt to the planned nuptials.

Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman planned to end the show with the two characters being married. Which meant the producers weren’t thrilled about DC’s comic book plans to marry the two off before the show could run it’s own course. Superman’s wedding would have to wait.

That crashed DC’s plans for a whole year and a brand new story arch had to be written up and told and fast!

“Let’s Just Kill ‘im” – Jerry Ordway

What was said out of frustration during one of their many brainstorming sessions actually caught on and one by one the team thought about the possibility and nodded in agreement. “Yeah, let’s kill ‘im” and the most impactful comic story began to take shape.

This wouldn’t be the first time Superman died or was supposed to be dying. But there was something exceptional about this particular story.

First of all, it had to do with all the characters now so connected to Superman’s life, people who now had a whole lot to lose with the death of their hero, their friend, their son, and their lover. This time around Superman had a human heart, one we all felt. One that would break all of ours if it suddenly stopped beating.

It’s been said that up until this storyline there were some absolutes. Lois Lane was untouchable, Metropolis could never be destroyed, and Superman was forever. With this one storyline though DC proved that nothing in life is certain and even our strongest heroes (fictional or no) can be laid to rest.

It’s incredible to think but the Death of Superman taught myself – and many other kids like me – not only the fragility of life but how very precious it was. And that we need to love and uphold goodness and those who stand for justice.

Doomsday Was Coming

What could kill Superman?

That was my initial question. Was Lex Luthor going to trap Superman in a pit of Kryptonite? That’s what I assumed. There were some cool rogues out there who presented a challenge for the Man of Steel but no one could kill him.

So DC created Superman’s greatest threat to date.

Enter Doomsday, a fierce creature from the cosmos who was power incarnate. Something that was a malignant force of chaotic nature. Unstoppable and a beast that could not be reasoned with. Without rationality or morality; a horror that could take down the Justice League without breaking a sweat.

Superman’s very own Doomsday.

The very first image of this beast was of his fist thrusting (DOOM!), punching (DOOM!), crushing (DOOM!) a gnarled path through enforced metallic layers and forcing himself into our world.

The very first thing he does once he’s freed is crush a little sweet birdie who made the mistake of landing in the monster’s open hand.

This guy was something else, something unlike anything brought to the Superman saga. Doomsday had no warmth and was without feeling.

He proceeded to threaten the quiet countryside and pushed his way to a more populated area: Metropolis.

He left a trail of massacre and pain wherever he went.

This was the first time fans ever saw Superman meet a challenge he wasn’t sure he could defeat. And it was absolutely brilliant! I remember hearing something Dick Donner said about hiring Gregory Peck for the lead role in The Omen. Donner said that if a serious actor like Charlton Hesston (his original casting choice) or Gregory Peck gets scared on screen it will scare the audience.

He was right and it applied heavily (even) on a motionless comic page. Seeing Superman scared that maybe he might not be able to save the city from this monstrosity really left an impact on readers.

People who criticized the Man of Steel film for its scenes of vast devastation across Metropolis clearly did not read Death of Superman.

The fight between Superman and Doomsday was full-page page-turners of little dialogue spoken and just a slugfest of two calamity forces, one of good and the other of destruction, fighting to the death.

This was a battle of two gods of equal strength and opposing purposes. Windows shattered and glass poured down like a storm when these two punched each other.

The city was cracked and half of it in ruins as its savior bled and struggled to keep it safe.

Superman tried to take the battle to the sky to avoid any further destruction, and, for a while, it worked. But Doomsday pressed the fight back to the city streets.

Superman was in a losing battle and as he struggled to catch his breath he made a decision, and really it was the only one left to him. That thing had to die.

It was a choice that cost Earth’s mightiest superhero his life. He fought to the end, slew his foe, and breathed his last breath in Lois Lane’s arms.

Superman actually died and people mourned.

The Legacy of Death of Superman

It was the best selling comic book of all time. People wrapped around street corners just to get their hands on a copy. Comic shops were overwhelmed and stores couldn’t carry enough copies.

People pressed through the doors and tore open the comic – while waiting in line to check out – because they just had to know what was going to happen!

We were witnessing nothing short of a phenomenon at work.

The first day it was on the market comic shops around the nation were selling ten-thousand copies each! That was just the first day and it did not slow down. Not for months.

Fans who had not picked up a comic in years were now in line to buy this story. People who never once opened a comic a day in their lives were suddenly grabbing handfuls of them.

The Death of Superman shook people, but, more importantly, it united people. It created a new wave of fandom that flowed forth to bring generations together.

It made me a Superman fan and I’ve stayed one ever since. The death of Superman breathed fresh new life to the industry and laid down a new foundation that comic writers and screenwriters alike adhere to still.

As I said before this wasn’t the first time Kal-El had died but it was for sure the most iconic time and became the criteria of comic-book legends. It prepared a way for other superheroes to meet their end and suffer in triumph.

It led to an equally iconic storyline for the Batman in Knightfall, Captain America was killed in the comic book events of Marvel’s Civil War, and even the current Last Ronin (TMNT) is gleaning the rewards from the Death of Superman formula.

The Death of Superman is timeless and has been retold (twice) in animated form as well as (SPOILERS!) in Batman vs. Superman that brought Doomsday to the big screen.

Not to mention the film logo for the upcoming Snyder Cut of the Justice League is straight up the Death of Superman banner. I can’t wait to see that film and the legend of the Superman continue on.

Superman survived the grave and lives on to this day. The story of his death continued on with Funeral For A Friend and Reign of the Superman. I strongly advise picking up TPB copies of them each and reliving the days of youth.

Warner Bros. turned the iconic story into two amazing animated films (as aforementioned) that are definitely worth your time. I’ve already mentioned Snyder’s Justice League but I love Man of Steel and Batman vs. Superman which retell this classic legend of heroic sacrifice.