When Marvel met DC
By Tom Kerr
For every event in the history of comics that is spoken of with reverence and nostalgia, there are others which are utterly forgotten or even infamous. For every “Death of Gwen Stacy,” there’s a “Planet of the Symbiotes” crossover or (shudder) a “Clone Saga.” But are these labels fair? It seems to this comics fan that if only we tried giving forgotten or hated stories a chance, we might discover they are actually pretty good. Maybe even great. Or maybe they really do suck.
Marvel Comics versus DC
What better way to start off a column on the most oft forgotten or shat-upon storylines in comics than with possibly the most widely deplored (and certainly most controversy-laden) crossover of all time? In the mid-1990s, every comic fanboy’s dream came true: Marvel Comics and DC Comics agreed to publish a four-issue crossover that pitted their greatest and most revered characters against one another. Yes, fan voting in the main events meant that characters would win due to popularity, not logic or solid reasoning. Yes, needing to balance the portrayals of the two universes meant no major risks or shocks could occur. And yes, this would have to be a “What-if” or “Elseworlds” story, and thus continuity proper would not be affected in any way. But damn it, the two biggest companies in superhero comics were going to duke it out! How couldn’t it be awesome!
Context
Mark Gruenwald, then Co-editor at Marvel, explained that the series came about largely due to his own fanboy-ish roots: “Certain questions were sparked in my adolescent mind. Questions like who’s stronger — Superman or the Hulk? Who’s a better fighter — Captain America or Batman? Who’s a better swimmer — Sub-Mariner or Aquaman?” Okay, so no human has ever actually wondered who was the better swimmer between Namor and Aquaman, but the other examples hold, as well as dozens of others besides. And although the two companies have had several crossovers before and since, never had a series tried to encompass so many characters and attempt to see which promotion was superior.
So how do you create a series that really pits the two companies’ best against one another without being accused of being too liberal and even-handed for the whole thing to be exciting? Strictly speaking, you can’t; however, to give the appearance of keeping things exciting and unexpected, it was decided that fans would be allowed to vote on the five main contests of the crossover: specifically, Batman/Captain America, Supeman/Hulk, Superboy/Spider-Man, Lobo/Wolverine and Wonder Woman/Storm. It was a fairly bold decision, really. One company could easily have blown the other out of the water, and with an odd number of bouts to be fought, there had to be a victor, lest there was some kind of draw. And so, the stage was set. After competing over sales for decades, the heroes of Marvel and DC would struggle on page in ink. However, could this massive media stunt be an enjoyable read?
Story
The over-arching plot of the series is as simple as it is contrived: the Marvel and DC multiverses are characterized as two great cosmic “brothers” who notice each other and wish to wipe each other out. To this end, they opt not to fight but to have a contest of their superhuman champions to see which brother is superior, with the inferior ceasing to exist. When the contest nears its end, the guardians of the two multiverses, respectively the Spectre and the Living Tribunal, join the two together to create an Amalgam universe which lasts only long enough to sell a small handful of one-shots. Finally, after the brothers are separated for reasons not adequately explained, they threaten to kill one another, but when each sees the other’s accomplishments, they are humbled and decide to live together in peace.
If this sounds, by stages, confusing, far-fetched, unfocused, or boring, then you’re right on all counts. There are several mini-plots within this main arc, but they are basically as dull and contrived as the main one. Kudos to writers Ron Marz and Peter David for the effort to flesh out this basically all-brawling concept with more dynamic plotting, but too bad it doesn’t succeed. The real story, of course, is why we’re all reading the series: the fights. The five primary bouts mentioned earlier are joined by six other pairings (presumably so that even if one company lost all five fan-voted rounds, a balance could still be achieved). Each fight is short and decidedly unsatisfactory, which was more or less inevitable given the setup, but it is disappointing nonetheless. I won’t bother saying who wins what fight (the info is readily available online), but, in case anyone cares, Marvel wins it 6 to 5 in the end. Of course, in truth, the only real losers here are those who spent money on this series. I guess that includes me.
Commentary
Looking at this series in retrospect, it’s tempting to read Marvel Comics versus DC less as an effort to see which company had better iconic heroes, but which company was doing more idiotic things with those heroes in the mid-1990s. Representing DC, we’ve got Superman with his stupid-looking Fabio-esque hair (at least this was a few months before Superman Red/Superman Blue); Superboy desperately trying to tap into the “cool” market by wearing sunglasses, while only serving to remind embittered readers about the whole “Reign of the Supermen” fiasco (the villian was Henshaw?! groan…); and Lobo, a flash in the pan that DC still seems unwilling to let die. Representing Marvel, there’s the lame Spider-clone that Marvel was trying so hard to encourage fans to accept as the genuine article; Wolverine with bone claws after his adamantium was torn out; and a smart and scientific Hulk who, if made angry, would revert into “Savage Banner”, a brainless, enraged 98-pound human. These aren’t your parents’ superheroes, kids. One wonders that the heroes weren’t too busy laughing at each other to raise their fists.
Simply put, the story itself is trite and unappealing. The whole “brothers” thing was poorly executed, and much longer than it needed to be. The only thing one could argue about the story of two giants childishly bidding for superiority, threatening to have a real conflict, and then simply deciding to be genteel and pat each other on the back, is that it is ironically appropriate. Since the purpose of this column is to provide a fresh look at story too often given a bad rap, I’m sorry to have to toe the company line on this one, but the books simply aren’t interesting reading. I’m not even going to go into the fights. Why bother? Does the internet need one more person noting that it was ridiculous to put Quicksilver, who can run approximately at the speed of sound, against the Flash, who can run approximately at the speed of light? Hasn’t it been said often enough that Jubilee’s cheesy fireworks are clearly no match for a crimefighter trained personally by the greatest detective and martial artist in the world, let alone how stupid it is that these two were in this series at all? Yes, it would probably be best if I just keep my mouth shut, lest this column approach the length of the Dead Sea Scrolls. The matches sucked. But then, how do you do justice to Superman versus The Hulk in five pages? You don’t. Accept it and move on.
I must admit that this series does well with one thing, and that is to tease readers with lots of face-offs we’d love to see. Besides the actual pairings themselves, there are lots of little confrontations that are pretty interesting, such as Superman and Juggernaut, Darkseid and Thanos, Batman and The Lizard, and so forth. Really, these little vignettes are one of the only redeeming qualities of the series. The problem (and no doubt a strategic one on the part of both companies), is that a series ostensibly designed to put argument to rest regarding the two companies crossing over, only created more argument and controversy. Ever wondered who’d come out on top between Wolverine and Killer Crock? Now you do. That’s how they hook ya, folks.
Conclusion
This project is legendary, but the actual story is not well remembered. Nor should it be. The plan was ambitious, but there seemed little hope that it could be good. I don’t expect Marvel or DC to ever give us a real answer about who is better between their characters, but I will say this: a series like this devalues all of them.
