Batman & Superman

[DoomRulz]

I recently read Action Comics #1000 Deluxe Edition: 80 Years of Superman and Detective Comics #1000 DE: 80 Years of Batman. For those who haven't read or heard of them, they collect various stories from the respective titles over the last 80 years, from the Golden Age to the Modern Age and also feature write-ups from various people involved or intimately familiar with the respective characters.

AC #1000 DE left me with a huge smile on my face, not unlike the one I had after watching Superman for the 1st time in 2017 (yes, yes, I know). It's not hard to understand why Superman is so beloved: he's what we all (ideally anyway) want to be as humans. The person who stands up for what's right, even if we're standing alone and have the courage to face our greatest challenges head on.

Batman of course is the perfect counter to that and I won't belabour the point of how they contrast/compare to one another. We're already familiar with those. But why is that Superman, despite being the character that launched and defined an industry as well as the very archetype of the superhero, has lost ground to Batman? What is about Batman specifically do you guys think that elevates him above Superman?

 

[Jermobooka]

Haven’t performed necromancy in a while, but I’ll make an exception for the Batman threads.

While Superman is my third favorite hero, he’s still not close to Batman for me. Batsy just…clicks with me on so many more levels. Here are some reasons—

Spoiler

#1: Batman is one of the coolest and most badass fictional characters ever. ‘Nuff said.

#2: The character of Batman is more interesting in every way. No powers, cool gadgets, ninja-athlete-brawler, his internal/outer struggles, the no kill rule, etc etc (says a lot when Superman is an incredibly interesting character in his own right.)

#3: Batman has more fantastic, well written stories (comics/film/shows/video games). Some of the best graphic novels, shows, and even movies ever made are Batman ones.

#4: His rouges gallery is infinitely better than Supes. Arguably the best in all of fiction. Joker, Harley Quinn, Two-Face, Penguin, Riddler, Poison Ivy, Bane, Mr. Freeze, Scarecrow, and even more fantastic villains that have been perfected over the years.

#5: Batman’s side characters, just like his villains, are (mostly) all iconic. Alfred, Gordon, Selina Kyle, Dick Grayson, Barbara Gordon, Jason Todd, and lot of others have become staples of the DC mythos and comics as a whole. (All Supes really has is Lois and his parents.)

#6: Batman merch is better. ‘Nuff said.

 

[The Batman]

It's simple: WB/DC is practically run by Batman fanboys who either don't like or don't get Superman.

Because of that, we've continuously gotten Superman media that is bad, mediocre, or ok but not very memorable at best, while Batman has continuously gotten very memorable movies, cartoons and games.

It's not that one character is better than the other, it's that one character gets way better treatment.

 

[shauner111]

Nah Batman’s better and not a cornball.

 

[Captain Tired]

I'm afraid I have to agree with The Batman on this one.

Agreeing with him is becoming an ugly habit as of late.

 

[Gothamsknight]

It's because media, particularly film, has made it way more complicated than it has to be to adapt Superman for a new generation. Deconstruction isn't the answer.

Plus, it's because he's Batman haha.

 

[Herofan]

why is that Superman, despite being the character that launched and defined an industry as well as the very archetype of the superhero, has lost ground to Batman? What is about Batman specifically do you guys think that elevates him above Superman?

Having no actual superpowers, being pretty much self-made (and the wealth having a wish fulfillment aspect), having gone through a lot of tragedy, having villains who (Lex aside) are more challenging and better and more worthy rivals, also, despite generally being darker, being able to have more different kind of story tones.

Superman, while still fun and interesting, too often it can seem like things are too easy for him and/or static.

 

[The Batman]

Meh. Superman has plenty challenging villains and tragedies if you actually read and watch Superman media. I just watched 4 seasons of Superman TV, and rarely did things seem like a cakewalk for him.

I don't see how villains like General Zod, Brainiac, Mongul, Doomsday, Metallo, and Parasite are less challenging than many of the well known Batman rogues.