Could questions of “this character could beat this character in a fight?” will never be triggered among comic fans. In particular, the hypothetical battles which cross the Marvel-DC division have always proved popular, largely because there is an opportunity so rarely for these characters to compete. It let fans forever debate if Superman or The Hulk is stronger (it’s the Hulk), or if the flash or the Quicksilver is faster (the flash), or if Batman could beat Captain America in a fight.
The Mashup Batman and Captain America is particularly interesting because, even if the capacities of the characters are not exactly the same, they seem to be almost perfectly equal. Batman trained to reach maximum physical condition. The Super Soldier serum that transformed Steve Rogers into Captain America pushed it to the top of human capacity, or potentially just beyond regular human capacities, according to the writer. Batman is the largest detective in the world, having a fierce intelligence which also results in extraordinary strategic and tactical capacities. Captain America, however, was created during the Second World War, giving it practical experience in battlefield strategies and the incredible ability to improvise. Batman’s utility belt is full of things and gadgets, but the increased senses of Captain America and the vibranium shield would provide a strong counter.
The fact that these two characters belong to different publishing companies means that there has rarely been the opportunity to compete. Rarely, but not never.
Early Marvel / DC crossovers have brought Batman and head into a dead end
Although they are rare, Marvel and DC crosses have taken place a few times. For years, these multisgments have played with Captain America in Batman, but avoided revealing a final winner. This is an understandable situation – no publisher probably wants their character to lose and, even if the creative teams could agree on a winner, fans of the losing hero would be in arms.
In 1996, “DC against Marvel Comics”, alternately entitled “Marvel Comics vs. DC” in the questions published by Marvel, saw the heroes of the two franchises gathered and forced to fight, with the results determined by the votes of readers. Batman clashed against Captain America in a fight that proved how equal. After the hours, the black knight emerged triumphant, but only because a sudden rush of water in the sewer where they fought, unbalanced the cap.
Shortly after their first fight, Batman and Cap met again in “Batman & Captain America”. This blow saw the two briefly commercial shots like Steve Rogers and Bruce Wayne. However, they both quickly realized who they really fought and started working together instead. In 2004, “Jla / Avengers”, Batman and Cap compete again, although they simply exchanged test blows, before deciding such an equal fight would be useless – although Batman conceded that Captain America was finally beating him.
Jla / Avengers uses a supervillain to settle Captain America vs Batman
“Jla / Avengers” finally gave fans a more final answer on who would gain in a fight between Batman and Captain America, even if he took an indirect path to this answer. “JLA / AVENGERS” # 4 saw Captain America face the bad DC Prometheus. Similar to Marvel’s prime contractor, Prometheus was able to reproduce the combat style and the capacities of various heroes and bad guys. Thanks to her computerized helmet, connected to her brain, Prometheus was able to download combat capacities directly into her central nervous system.
When Prometheus fought Captain America in “Jla / Avengers”, he revealed that he used Batman’s fighting skills, alongside the hypnotic capacities of his helmet. Imperturbable by that, Cap took Prometheus in a hand -to -hand combat and easily beat it. Cap said that his World War II experiences taught him the goal he needed to see through Prometheus’s tips and overcome any adversary.
If Captain America beats a villain using Batman’s fighting skills was not sufficient proof that the Marvel would beat the Caped Crusader in a fight, DC provided some additional evidence. A few years earlier, in “JLA” # 16, Batman had himself fought Prometheus and had lost, bad. These two heroes faced Prometheus as he used Batman’s own skills, as well as the other things in his helmet. The result was clear – Captain America wins.
