We may be talking about the history of comics itself: two of the top ambassadors of this industry and the two biggest emblems that DC Comics has above other great icons of this art such as Wonder Woman, Green Lantern or Flash.
Despite this, they are two superheroes that are very different from one another and that with the passage of time, and thanks to the contributions of the best writers in the history of comics, they have become increasingly marked. Superman represents an ideal that brings hope to the world with incredible acts thanks to the powers offered by the yellow sun’s rays that illuminate the Earth while Batman is a superhero that grew more in the dark, based on his almost infinite financial resources and his ingenuity, which means that he lacks the superpowers that Superman has.
In this regard, because of the greatness of both characters and everything that we already mentioned, there has been an almost historical debate that has always aroused the interest of all fans in the world of comics: whether or not Batman can beat Superman. Although the confrontation best known by the general public (that is, those unfamiliar with the comics) is that of the movie Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice, where the Dark Knight defeats the last son of Krypton, there are many other duels between these two titans.
When Batman Wins
Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns (1986) was a watershed moment in this discussion, becoming one of the most important comics in the history of the medium and showing an older Batman using several strategies to weaken Superman, including the use of kryptonite.
In Batman: Endgame (2014), where a rare type of poison turns members of the Justice League (except Batman) into their own versions of the Joker, we have a fight between them, where Gotham’s Dark Knight defeats Superman with one of his ingenious plans: a substance based on kryptonite that spits at the Man of Steel and weakens him. Another victory for the Dark Knight (or at least a display of his capacity against Superman) was in Batman: Hush (2002): Poison Ivy was controlling Superman and Batman used a kryptonite ring to hold him off, along with other strategies, as Catwoman was looking for Lois Lane to help stop the Man of Steel’s rampage.
When Superman Wins
Likewise, there are other cases where Superman is the winner as in Lex Luthor: Man of Steel (2005) since, in this case, he manages to use his super blow to keep the kryptonite away from Batman’s hands and, from this point forward, there was nothing else he could do, hence why he was taken by Superman and launched from a height extremely close to the stratosphere.
These are just some examples of many confrontations that have existed throughout history between these two and, finally, the end result will always depend on whom you ask because every fan has its favorite: Batman fans will always say that he is the winner while those of Superman think that he would be the winner. Trying to make an impartial analysis and answer the question of the title of the article would have to say that everything depends on the circumstances since if we talk about a hand in hand similar to a UFC fight, Batman would not have the slightest chance.
But yes, Bruce has the possibility to prepare and use his gadgets and plans to take advantage of the Kal-El’s weaknesses, being the most common plan involving the use of kryptonite, which makes the situation change and leave Batman as a favorite.
