This post deals with robots in the DC and Marvel universes. Robots come in three flavors: good guys, bad guys and funny. Which universe has the coolest good guy robot and which universe has the coolest bad guy robot? Which universe has the funniest robot? I refuse to make a distinction between robots and androids in this post. The terms are used haphazardly in both universes and basically in comic books the only real difference is that the androids are more human looking than the robots. This is fairly superficial distinction and even this is not a consistent factor. In more sophisticated science fiction universes there is some attempt to also distinguish between robots and androids using some quality of sentience rather than mere appearance. Below is a list of DC robots with at least their first appearance in parentheses.
List of DC Robots
Ajax ,Wonder-Man, Superman #163
Aluminium, Metal Men #2
Amazo, The Brave and the Bold #30
Amazon Tin Queen, Metal Men #4, #5
Automan, Robot 32198, Tales of the Unexpected #91
Barium, Metal Men #2
Batman Machine, Detective Comics #224
Batman’s Robot Twin, Detective Comics #239
Batman Robot, Detective Comics #281
Black Widow Robot, Metal Men #17
Bozo the Iron Man, Smash Comics #1
Brainiac, Action Comics #242
Brainiac 12, Superman Vol. 2 #200
Brimstone, Legends #1
C.A.P.D., Computerized Automatic Patrol Dog, Weird War Tales #116
Calcium, Metal Men #2
Carbon Dioxide, Metal Men #10
Chemo, Metal Men #14, #25
Chloroform, Metal Men #10
Cobalt, Metal Men #31
Computo, Adventure Comics #340
Construct, Justice League of America #142
D.A.V.E. –Digital Advanced Villain Emulator, The Batman: Episode #039
Death Metal Men, Metal Men #2
Derek Reston, Ace of Spades, Justice League of America #203
Doctor Bedlam, Mister Miracle Vol. 1 #2
Drone, New Teen Titans Annual Vol. 2 #1
Duke of Oil, Outsiders Vol. 1 #6
Dybbuk, Suicide Squad vol, 1 #45
Electrical Warrior, Electric Warrior Vol. 1 #1
Eradicator, Action Comics Annual #2
Eterno, Action Comics #343
Female Amazon Robots, Metal Men #32
Floating Furies, Metal Men #9
Gas Gang, Metal Men #6
Giant Robot, Tales of the Unexpected #68
G.I. Robot, Star Spangled War Stories #101
Gallium, Metal Men #31
Gold, Showcase #37
Gonzo the Mechanical Bastard, Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters #2
Healer, Action Comics #387
Helium, Metal Men #10
Hourman, Android, Justice League of America #12,
Ilda, Star Hawkins, Strange Adventures #114
Indigo, Titans/Young Justice Graduation #1
Kelex, The Man of Steel #1
Kid Amazo, Justice League America Classified #37
Krakko, Weird War Tales #113
Krydel-4, Green Lantern Corps Vol.2 #1
L-Ron, Justice League International #14
Lead, Showcase #37
Living Robots, Mystery in Space #99
Lord Havok, Justice League Europe #15
Man Horse of Hades, Metal Men #19
Manhunters, 1st Issue Special #5
Mechanical Masters of Rann, Mystery in Space #65
Mekanique, All Star Squadron #58
Mercury, Showcase #37
Metallo, Action Comics #252
Missile Men, Metal Men #1, #12, #54
Mister Atom, Captain Marvel Adventures #78
Osmium, Metal Men #31
Oxygen, Metal Men #10
Platinum, Showcase #37
Plutonium, Metal Men #2
Plutonium Man, Metal Men #45
Pulsar Stargrave, Superboy #223
Red Tornado, Justice League of America #64
Red Volcano, DC Universe #0
Reverse-Flash, The Flash Vol. 2 #134
Robbie the Robot Dog, Star-Spangled Comics #25
Robby Robot, House of Mystery #164
Robin, Young Justice #1000000
Robin Robot, Detective Comics #290
Robo, Superman #132
Robot Cop of Gotham City, Batman #70
Robot Eggs, Strange Adventures #197
Robot Master’s Robots, Superman #152
Robot Juggernauts, Metal Men #9
Robot Raiders, Mystery in Space #53
Robot Renegades, Metal Men #2, #3
Robot Space Ranger, Tales of the Unexpected #73
Robot Town, Strange Adventures #164
Robot Who Lost His Head, Strange Adventures #136
Robot Woman, Wonder Woman #48
Robot Wonder Woman, Wonder Woman #111
Robot Wonder Woman 2, Wonder Woman #137
Robot World of Ancient Rann, Mystery of Space #102
Robot X-1, Strange Adventures #169
Robotica, Legion Worlds #1
RRU-9-2, Guy Gardner #11
Servitor, Kobra #1
Shaggy Man, Justice League of America #45
Shaolin Robot, 52 #6
Silver, Metal Men #31
Skeets, Booster Gold Vol. 1 #1
Skyscraper Robot, Metal Men #13
Sodium, Metal Men #2
Solaris, DC One Million #1
Stel, Green Lantern Vol. 2 #11
Superman Robots
Synthetic Men, Strange Adventures #17
Termite Robots, Metal Men #16
The Metal Mods, Metal Men #26
The Rebel Robot, Metal Men #15
Thor the Thunder Dog, Police Comics #8
Tin, Showcase #37
Tomorrow Woman, Justice League of America #5
Torgola Robot Eater of Metalis, Metal Men #29
Toyman, Action Comics #837
Urthlo, Adventure Comics #300
World Wreckers, Strange Adventures #50
Zirconium, Metal Men #2
Iridium, Metal Men #31
One robot stands out in the DC universe as the ultimate baddie and that’s Brainiac. Brainiac is so famous that the word is now derogatory slang for someone who is too brainy. Brainiac has changed from the golden age and is currently human. Brainiac also changed from being green skinned humanoid with studs in his head and wearing a pink yes pink outfit to being made of metallic silver and looking a lot more robotic. For me the classic Brainiac will always be the green guy with pink tights. This Brainiac went around shrinking cities and putting them in bottles. The guy collected cities! I collected comic books and this guy is collecting cities. How cool is that? One of the cities was Kandor which Superman confiscated and kept in his Fortress of Solitude. Kandor was the source of many, many adventures with the Superman family in the silver age which seem silly now but were great fun when I was a kid. Brainiac also had an indestructible force field that he could project around himself via a belt or around his space ship. Superman could not penetrate this force field and Brainiac was basically impervious to attack from Superman. Brainiac also teamed up with Luthor on and off and of course each one tried to prove he was more brilliant than the other. Brainiac had a twelfth level intellect which I guess is pretty smart.
I do want to mention the Metal Men. The Metal Men were a team of good robots that had their high point in the sixties. The Metal Men included the Gold, Lead, Mercury, Platinum and Tin and they premiered in Showcase #37 but soon got their own title. The one adjective I would use to describe the Metal Men is zany! They were shape shifters and had the personality traits of their respective metal. Mercury was volatile. Lead was steady and so on. Platinum was female and of course was in love with her creator Dr. Magnus. This love was not reciprocated and was an ongoing plot line.
The Metal Men mostly fought other robots which makes no sense whatsoever except that in sixties logic the robot title should have lots of other robots. The Metal Men inhabited their own little corner of DC robot land. The second most famous good robot in the DC universe is the Red Tornado. The Red Tornado is a long standing member of the Justice League of America and spent a lot of time spouting robotic angst about not being human. I really don’t like the Red Tornado at all. The name is stupid. The costume is stupid. The angst rhetoric is forced and not well done. The Metal Men win!
DC has used robots for comic relief a great deal. The Metal Men were basically a funny tile if you consider zany to be a shade of funny. DC did have at least one ongoing character that was a funny robot. Star Hawkins was bumbling private eye of the future who first appeared in Strange Adventures #114 in 1960. Ilda was his robot secretary and the brains of the team. Ilda provided consistent comic relief in a manner similar to Rosie the Robot in The Jetsons. As I have pointed out in other posts in this series, DC has a much greater willingness to mix genres for extremely silly effect. This isn’t even the silliest DC private eye title of this period. That honor belongs to Detective Chimp. These silly early silver age DC titles do not age well.
You have not one but three robot dogs: C.A.P.D. Robbie the Robot Dog and Thor the Thunder Dog. Robot Man of course has to have Robbie the Robot Dog instead of a regular dog. Why? No reason just more DC zaniness. Robbie can talk and Robot Man and Robbie had some very surreal conversations. L-Ron is a robot that works for the Justice League and is obsequious to the point of hilarity. Skeets is the side kick of Booster Gold and is not as funny as L-Ron but has his moments. L-Ron wins the funny robot category in the DC universe.
There are some pretty powerful robots in the DC universe including Amazo, who has all the powers of the original Justice League of America but can absorb more powers beyond that. The Shaggy Man is another scary robot who has vast strength and vast recuperative powers and is a mindless fighter who can take on the whole Justice League at the same time.
For sheer weirdness, G.I. Robot is probably the winner in the DC universe. G.I. Robot is a robot that runs around in standard G.I. gear. This is a mix of science fiction and the war comic genre. Not a lot of companies have the guts to mix these two genres and perhaps this is just as well.
The winner of the best DC evil robot is clearly Brainiac. The winner of best DC robot hero is not a hero but the Metal Men group as a whole. The funniest robot is L-Ron.
List of Marvel Robots
Acidroid, Earth-616, Cable #65
Adam II, What If #4
Adap-Tor, Earth-616, Iron Man #217
Agent Cheesecake,Earth-616, She-Hulk Vol. 2 #15
Air-Walker, Automaton, Earth-616, Fantastic Four #120
Albert, Earth-5211, Exiles #85
Albert, Earth-616, Wolverine Vol. 2 #37
Alchemoid, Earth-616, Captain America #187
Alex Ellis, Earth-616, Amazing Spider Man Annual #27
Alkhema, Earth-616, Avengers West Coast #90
Alpha, Earth-616, Marvel Team-Up #129
Alpha Ray, Earth-616, Storm Breaker: The Saga of Beta Ray Bill #1
Analyzer As Recorder Thor #132, As Analyzer Thor #422
Android Andy, Earth-238, Daredevils #7
Android Man, Earth-616, Fantastic Four #79
Aquarius, LMD, Earth-616,
Arch-E-5912, Earth-616, World War Hulk: Front Line #1
Ten-Thirtifor, Earth-616, Maximum Security Annual #8
TESS-One, Earth-616, Captain America #8
The Ham, Earth-616, Marvel Comics Presents #34
The Living Brain, Spider-Man #8
Thermal Man, Earth-616, Thor #168
Time-bot, Thor #409
Tomazooma, Robot, Earth-616, Fantastic Four #80
Tommy, Sleeper, Earth-616, Plasmer #1
Torgo, Mekkan, Earth-616, Fantastic Four #91
Tracer, Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #1
TransHuman ROBot, Earth-616, Fantastic Four #311
Tri-Sentinel, Earth-616, Amazing Spider-Man #329
Ultimo, Earth-616, Tales of Suspense #76
Ultron, Earth-10102, Exiles Vol. 2 #3
Ultron, Earth-1610, Ultimates Vol. 2 #6
Ultron 8, Earth-90210, Wolverine Vol. 3 #67
Unit, Earth-616, S.W.O.R.D. #1
Victor Mancha, Earth-616, Runaways Vol. 2 #1
Virgo, LMD, Earth-616,
Vision, Earth-161, X-Men Forever Vol. 2 #1
Vision, Earth-2149, Marvel Zombies vs. Army of Darkness #1
Vision, Earth-616, Avengers #57
Vision, Earth-691
Vision, Earth-932, Avengers #359
Vision, Gah Lak Tus, Earth-1610, Ultimate Spider-Man #86
Volton, Earth-616, Invaders Vol. 2 #1
VOR/TEX, Earth-616
Vostok, Earth-616
Walkabout, Earth-616, Marvel: The Lost Generations #12
Walking Stiletto
Warhawk, Earth-616, Ms. Marvel #12
Warrior Robot, Fantastic Four #85
Watchtower, Earth-616, Wolverine Vol. 2 #154
Widget
Wild Sentinels, Earth-616, New X-Men #114
X, Amazing Fantasy #4
X.E.R.O., Earth-616,
Zero, Earth-4935, New Mutants #86
Some of the top evil robots in the Marvel universe include the Sentinels, Ultron and the Super-Adaptoid. Probably the most powerful evil robot is Super-Adaptoid. The Super-Adaptoid is a clear clone of Amazo. The Super-Adaptoid absorbs the powers of the Avengers. A common what if battle on bullentin boards is the Super-Adaptoid versus Amazo which is basically an extension of the Avengers versus JLA what if battle? The Super-Adaptoid while a lot of fun visually, due to all his super powers, doesn’t have much in the way of characterization.
Ultron does not have this problem! Henry Pym, Giant-Man, Yellow Jacket, etc. is the creator of Ultron. Ultron is one scary looking robot who is made out of adamantium, an indestructible metal, and can project massive energy bolts. Ultron may be tough looking but he is a big softie at heart and even creates his own robot mate called Jocasta. Jocasta’s mind was based on the brain patterns of the Wasp, the wife of his “father” Henry Pym. Jocasta is a robot copy of Ultron’s “mother”. Ultron is filled with Oedipal rage towards his creator. Jocasta rejects the love of Ultron because she doesn’t like meglomaniacal sociopaths who want to destroy all organic life on Earth. What a picky lady! Ultron is no quitter when it comes to the game of love and creates a second robot lover called Alkhema and was more ruthless than Jocasta but ended up turning on Ultron as well. Poor Ultron!
Poor Ultron!
The Sentries are created to hunt down mutants and actually there are different models with vastly different power levels. The Sentinels often try to capture mutants so they have all sorts of gadgets for this purpose including gas, nets, cables, you name it. The Sentinels have probably appeared in more issues than all other evil Marvel robots put together. The Sentinels are an interesting plot device but have zero personality with very few exceptions. The Master Mold was kind of an individual. There was the Sentinel with a big 2 on his chest so he’s named Sentinel 2. Sentinel 2 appeared in Avengers # 104 and was mutated when he flew towards the Sun. A batch of Sentinels had decided that the source of mutation was the Sun so they attacked the Sun! No one said the Sentinels were geniuses. That mutated Sentinel was destroyed by his fellow sentries when they realized he was a mutant of sorts.
There is Nimrod who is an advanced Sentinel from an alternate future that takes on a human identity and starts to grow more human. Nimrod and Master Mold merge to create Bastion and an overly complicated plot line, the great weakness of Marvel plotlines. However, all in all the Sentinel are a mindless army that is dangerous precisely due to their simple cognitions that often lead to draconian solutions. I love the Sentinel but just find Ultron more interesting. Ultron wins the evil robot title in the Marvel universe.
The top two good guy robots in the Marvel universe are the original Human Torch and the Vision. The Human Torch was huge during the Golden Age and current comic book readers are probably not aware of this. The fist important comic book crossover was a battle between the Human Torch and Namor the Submariner in Marvel Mystery #9 back in 1940. This is of course a fire versus water theme. The android Human Torch came back in the silver age in Fantastic Four Annual #4. Despite this reappearance the android Human Torch is nowhere near as popular as he once was.
Probably the most famous robot of the current Marvel universe is the Vision who is a member of the Avengers. The Vision was probably created by the same scientist, Phineas Horton, who created the Human Torch but this plotline keeps changing. The Vision had a long running affair with the mutant the Scarlet Witch. There was lot of angst in the relationship and Quicksilver, the brother of the Scarlet Witch, and also a mutant, was extremely vocal about his opinion that the relationship was an abomination. There is of course the irony that Quicksilver is a target of anti-mutant prejudice but this does not stop him from being prejudiced against robots.
I will mention that the Human Torch and the Vision are both referred to as androids probably because they are pretty human looking especially the Human Torch. The Vision had bright red skin and currently is ghostly white so, minus make up, is not passing for a human. The Vision used to be chock full of all sorts of deep emotions and existential angst but is currently lacking in emotion much to the chagrin of the Scarlet Witch. The Vision wins the good robot title in the Marvel universe.
There aren’t as many funny and/or zany robots in the Marvel universe as in the DC universe. There is the Humanoid Experimental Robot B-Type Integrated Electronics or H.E.R.B.I.E. for short created by Reed Richards who provided some comic relief in the Fantastic Four title and that’s about it. There isn’t even one robot dog in the Marvel universe and maybe that’s a good thing. Most of the humor in the Fantastic Four title involving H.E.R.B.I.E. is slap stick rather than verbal and not that funny.
H.E.R.B.I.E. was hilarious in the title Franklin Richards: Son of a Genius. The art was cartoony and Franklin, the son of Reed Richards was a very Calvin, of Calvin and Hobbes, type character. H.E.R.B.I.E. plays the serious nanny trying to keep Franklin out of trouble with little success. The Awesome Android provided comic relief in volume two of the She-Hulk that was a funny title overall. However, H.E.R.B.I.E. in Franklin Richards: Son of a Genius is funnier and of course H.E.R.B.I.E. is one of the major characters in this title versus the peripheral role of the Awesome Android who changes his name to Awesome Andy. While the title She-Hulk is very funny, Awesome Andy isn’t necessarily all that funny. H.E.R.B.I.E. wins the funny robot contest in the Marvel Universe.
Conclusion
Brainiac is one of the top super villains of all time and clearly wins the bad robot category. A fight between Brainiac and Ultron would be a lot of fun to watch and is the subject of at least one online post (http://www.electricferret.com/fights/issue_186.htm). Who wins the good robot category? The Metal Men have a zaniness that the Vision does not but they are definitely an acquired taste and the Metal Men comic book was always a second rate title. The Vision is an important member of the Avengers. The Avengers are a first rate title. The Vision wins the good robot category.
I do want to mention that the Vision and the Red Tornado are both red and androids. The Vision belongs to the Avengers. The Red Tornado belongs to the DC equivalent of the Avengers, the Justice League. Is this a coincidence? I think not.
L-Ron is funny but H.E.R.B.I.E. is funnier. Marvel wins the good robot and funny robot contests and wins overall. DC won the weapons and transportation posts so this is a comeback for Marvel. I would make another observation about the role of robots in the DC and Marvel universes.
Marvel has a lot more robots than DC! DC has 114 robots. Marvel has 257 robots! I counted all sorts of one-shot robots from the Metal Men title and the DC count was still much lower than the Marvel count. My after the count theory is as follows. Marvel has a consistent multiverse, so many robots get double or triple counts depending on which universe in the Marvel multiverse they appeared. DC’s multiverse is a total mess! Don’t get me started.
I think the idea of multiple universes to explain away continuity lapses was a great invention that was started by DC but DC decided to use a Crisis of the Infinite Earths comic book series to get rid of the other multiverses and create one universe. That might have been ok but they then created a brand new 52 system that assumes there are only 52 universes. There is also something called Zero Hour, and something else called hypertime. I almost vowed to never ever read another DC comic book after the Crisis of Infinite Earth fiasco but let’s face it I am addicted to comic books and need overpowers reason in the long run. The way DC has handled their multiverses has led to a destruction of DC universe continuity.
Continuity leads to suspension of disbelief!
Suspension of disbelief leads to much greater reading pleasure!
Greater reading pleasure leads to greater comic book sales!
I urge all comic book writers to repeat the above three sentences at least once a day in a mantra like manner! Plus there are comic book geeks like myself that love their ability to explain the history of a comic book universe and this is a task that is largely impossible with the DC universe. I would also like to make a comparison of how DC and Marvel have treated robots in their respective universes from a historical perspective.
In the golden age robots were treated in a similar manner by both DC and Marvel. Jack Kirby created a slew of monsters in the golden age before the success of the silver age Spider-Man and many of these monsters are robots that have ended up on the list Marvel robot list. Even the one-shot robots had great names and you remembered them. The Marvel golden age monster stories often had a Twilight Zone style ironic twist at the end that stuck with you after you read the story. Marvel titles that featured monsters include Tales of the Unexpected, Strange Tales and Amazing Fantasy. Amazing Fantasy was a title that was pure monsters until Amazing Fantasy #15. Amazing Fantasy #15 is the issue in which Spider-Man premiered and this was the beginning of the end of Marvel’s golden age monster stories. Long before everything was reprinted in graphic novels, Marvel honored their golden age monsters in the silver age with the Fantasy Masterpieces title that I collected avidly having missed the golden age due to my age.
There were plenty of one-shot robots in the equivalent DC titles Strange Adventures, Tales of the Unexpected and Mystery in Space that are on the DC robot list but even their inclusion in my DC robot list did not change the numbers that much. DC and Marvel in the golden age treated robots in a similar manner. Overall, the robot stories of Marvel, especially those by Jack Kirby, were superior to those in DC in the golden age. However, in both universes in the golden age, robots were one-shot characters limited to certain omnibus titles with an ironic twist at the end but things changed in the silver age.
In the silver age, Marvel developed over reaching themes using robots that DC does not have even now. Overall, humans in the Marvel universe see robots as the equalizer in their dealings with superhumans. The Marvel universe uses robots a lot more as a tool of government. Marvel assumes that the relationship between government and superhumans will be antagonistic. Robots are a major tool of the government to combat superhumans in the Marvel Universe.
The Sentinels versus mutants storyline is a giant one in the Marvel universe that has no equivalent in the DC universe. There is even a little retcon pre-Sentinel history. TESS-One is a robot created by the US government to fight super soldiers like Captain America near the end of 1945. The right hand of the government creates super soldiers and the left hand of the government creates the robot contingency plan to destroy them if they get out of hand. . S.H.I.E.L.D uses Life Model Decoys (LMDs) to infiltrate and spy on enemies but in at least one storyline the LMDs turn on S.H.I.E.L.D because they are tools without conscious who can be controlled by others. Agent Cheesecake is a quite gorgeous LMD that goes the extra mile and seduces targets! Agent Cheesecake is probably the sexiest comic book robot and maybe the sexiest robot period.
Agent Cheesecake
You just have to love Marvel’s paranoid vision of the world! This use of robots by government includes alien governments. The Kree are an intergalactic empire and their use of robotic Sentries as immortal sentries at the peripheries of their empire, where a Kree humanoid base is not practical i.e. Earth, is also a major storyline that has no equivalent in the DC universe.
All in all, the Marvel universe has a more developed thematic way of dealing with robots than the DC universe. What makes robots special? Obedience and functional immortality! They are the perfect servants of the state that needs obedient servants that can mimic the functional immortality of the state. Leaders come and go but the goals of the state can be enforced in the long run via robots. Robots are also tool of state whose obedience and immortality can be the downfall of the governments that create them. The Sentries in alternate Marvel time lines often outlive the US government that created them and enforce the Mutant Registration Act in a draconian manner that is ultimately harmful to humans and not just mutants.
This idea of technology out of control is of course a major science fiction theme. I don’t think it’s just science fiction anymore. The US government seriously looked at a Star Wars ballistic system that would have had to operate at the speed of light to be practical and humans and their command, control and communications systems (C3) cannot operate at this speed. The C3 of Star Wars would have had to been relegated to computer systems. Since the Star Wars system is basically defensive that’s ok but sooner or later someone would have decided, well heck why stop there and get rid of that obsolete football the Prez carries and hand the whole shebang to the computers. I don’t worry too much about Sentries over even Skynet, of the Terminator movie series, but I do worry about a computer in the future with bad code that starts WW III due to a glitch. Our technology is moving ahead much faster than our international social systems and eventually we will go the way of the dinosaurs. Bigger computers are great but we also need wiser minds to control those computers.
I think DC is still stuck in a very fifties usage of robots where robots are a novelty and more modern themes of robots as out of control technology due to social rather than novelty reasons is absent. Individual robots go haywire in the DC universe but the idea that social systems such as the government are haywire and create haywire robots as a result is not explored. The robot as novelty was highlighted in DC’s Metal Men. I love the Metal Men! However, the Metal Men are totally dated. The way Marvel uses robots is just a lot more interesting that the way than how DC does. This is my third post comparing technology in DC and Marvel and I want to make an overall observation.
Marvel treats technology in a more consistent thematic manner. Iron Man’s armor leads to the Armor Wars. Mutants are treated with a consistent pseudo science genetic “Gene X” explanation. Adamantium, a super metal, is used consistently to create many super weapons. Robots as institutional servants and the plotlines that follow from this idea are repeated. The government continues trying to create super soldiers after the success of Captain America and the Weapon X program that creates Wolverine and many other characters is the result.
DC treats technology in a much more haphazard manner. Technologies are created for one issue and never seen again. There are far fewer overreaching storylines in the DC universe that tie the different technologies together. Technology has more continuity in the Marvel universe than the DC universe! Again!
Continuity leads to suspension of disbelief!
Suspension of disbelief leads to much greater reading pleasure!
Greater reading pleasure leads to greater comic book sales!
I think whatever the results of individual posts in this series, Marvel treats technology in a superior manner compared to DC.
I would argue that the second most important category of objects in the DC and Marvel comic book universe are objects of transportation. Superheroes fight supervillains and weapons are needed to do this. Unfortunately for superheroes, supervillains are often a cowardly lot that will flee with the loot rather than fight. Some warrior supervillains like Doomsday will stand and fight Superman but many supervillains try to flee Superman. This means the superhero needs a speedy mode of transport to catch the supervillain and the supervillain wants a mode of speedy transportation to escape. Plus when a crime occurs, the superhero needs to show up at the scene of the crime in the first place. Last but not least, most superheroes patrol anything from a sector of a galaxy, Green Lanterns, to a section of city, Daredevil and Hell’s Kitchen, and need a way of getting around.
In other science fiction universe there is a “vehicle” category but comic books are more speculative fiction than science fiction and some of the most iconic and important forms of transport only vaguely fit even the most general definition of vehicle. This post will look at vehicles but also discuss other objects that provide transportation. Does DC or Marvel have the coolest objects of transportation?
DC Transportation
Below is a list of objects of transportation in the DC universe.
Adam Strange’s Jetpack
Alpha Centurion’s Pax Romana
Ambush Bug’s Teleport Suit
Batboat
Batcycle
Batmobile
Batplane
Birds of Prey – Aerie One
Birds of Prey – Aerie Two
Black Manta’s Sea Saucer
Black Manta’s Walker
Blackhawk Planes
Blue Beetle’s Bug
Blue Tracer
Boom Tube
Booster Mobile
Brains Submarine
Braniac’s Skull Ship
Braniac’s Star Ship
Brontadon (Ship)
Catwoman’s Catmobile
Catwoman’s Catplane
Challenger SST
Clockincopter
Cluster Ship
Cometeer
Craddock Carriage
Di’ib
Doomsday Ship
Eye of Zared
Fiddler’s Fiddle Car
Flash’s Cosmic Threadmill
Flying Fish
Flying Sundial
Fokker Dr. I
Gentleman’s Horse
Gibel Ship
Golden Knight Flying Horse
Gorandian Battle Tripod
Gorandian Submarine
Green Arrow’s Arrowcar
Green Arrow’s Arrowplane
Green Lantern Ring
Grumman XF5F
Gyrosub
Haunted Tank
Hawkman’s Wings
Hourman’s Timeship
Huntress Motorcycle
Javelin-7
Jokermobile
Jonah Hex’s Mechanical Horse
JSA’s Steel Eagle
Justice League Cruiser
Justice League Teleporter
Kal-El’s Rocketship
Kanjar Ro’s Spaceship
Lansarian Morphing Disk
Legion Cruiser
Legion Flight Rings
Legion of Superheroes Flying Rings
Legion of Superheroes Time Bubble
Legion of Superheroes Time Cube
Lobo’s Spacehog
LX-811 Star Cruiser
Mark 494 Star Cruiser
Mitsu-Bishi
Mobius Chair
Multipurpose Intercept/Reconnaissance Vehicle
Mustang Three
Nautilus of Earth ABC
Newsboy Legion’s Whiz Wagon
Omega Men Mothership
Orion’s Astro-Harness
Owlship
P-40 Warhawk
Paco’s Convertible
Panzer-Ship
Peacemaker Hog
Pilgrim One
Quantum Jet
Rip Hunter’s Timesphere
Robin’s Redbird
Royal Flush Gang’s Flying Cards
Sam
Samson’s Chronomobile
Sandals of Hermes
Scanner One
Scarlet Skier’s Cosmic Skis
Scorpion-Ship
Sea Witch
Sheba
Space Cab
Space Shuttle Excalibur
Star-Rocket Racer
Starhunter’s Sunrider
Steel Eagle
Super-Cycle
Superman’s Phantom Zone Projector – It transports you to another dimension!
Supermobile
Swinging through the rooftops – Batman
T-Jet
T-Sub
Teen Titan’s Helicopter
Thangarian Star Cruiser
Time Bubble
Trickster’s Air Shoes
User: Bonesaw 19
Vig-Cycle
Vigilante’s Motocycle
Warehouse X Toys
Warhound
Warlord’s Plane
Whirly-Bat
Whiz Wagon
Wildcat’s Motorcycle
Wingcycle
Wonder Woman’s Invisible Plane
Some of the more famous objects of transportation are Adam Strange’s Jetpack, the Batmobile, the Flash’s Cosmic Threadmill, the Haunted Tank, Hawkman’s Wings, Green Lantern’s Ring, Kal-El’s Rocketship, Legion of Superheroes Time Bubble, and Wonder Woman’ Invisible Plane. The top two of this list, the crème de la crème, are the Batmobile and Kal El’s Rocketship. If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery then the Batmobile has been praised again and again. The Arrowmobile, Catmobile, Jokermobile and to some extent the Spider-Mobile, as parody, are all derived from the Batmobile. Kal-El’s Rocketship refers to the space ship that delivered Superman to the planet Earth from Krypton. The Batmobile has been the subject of schematics from the beginning and you can buy toy collections of Batmobiles from the golden age to the present.
Superman’s rocket is a very different affair and the particulars of how the ship looks have varied tremendously from the golden age to the present. This is a contest between a very visually defined vehicle and an icon. The historic significance of Superman’s rocket ship is more important than the Batmobile. The rocket ship is an integral part of the Superman mythos and that mythos in turn largely defined comic books from the beginnings to the present. On iconic grounds I would say Kal El’s rocketship is the most important object of transportation in the DC universe and the coolest.
Marvel Transportation
Below is a list of objects of transportation in the DC universe.
Asgardian Star Jammer
Avengers Quinjet
Big Wheel
Dr. Doom’s Time Machine
Dr. Strange’s Cloak of Levitation
Fantastic Four’s Fantasti-Car
Fantastic Four’s Pogo Plane
Flying Horses – Valyky, Black Knight
Galactus Ship
Ghost Rider’s Hell Cycle
Green Goblin’s Glider
Guardians of the Galaxy – Freedom’s Lady
Hawkeyes Sky-cycle
Iron Man’s Armor
Kang’s Time-Ship
Moon Knight’s Helicopter
Nextwave’s Shockwave Rider
Quasar’s Quantum Bands
Runaway’s Leapfrog
S.H.I.E.L.D. Flying Car
S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier
Silver Surfer’s Board
Spider-Man’s Spider-Mobile
Stiltman’s Stilts
Swinging through the rooftops – Spiderman, Daredevil
Thor’s Hammer Mjolnir
X-Men’s Blackbird
Some of the most important objects of transportation in the Marvel universe include:
the Fantasti-Car, Iron Man’s Armor, the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier, Thor’s hammer and the X-Men’s Blackbird. I have to mention is the Spider-Mobile that is largely forgotten but was in Spider-Man during the seventies and was hilarious. The Spider-Mobile was a parody of consumerism. Spider-Man agreed to ride the Spider-Mobile for an ad agency. Spider-Man is about always broke. The problem was the Spider-Mobile was constantly having troubles. Webhead would have been better of sticking to his webbing and swinging through the roof tops.
My Marvel favorites are the Fantasti-Car and Iron Man’s armor. Both are marvels of comic book engineering. Schematics of both were provided early on and you could almost believe these machines could be created. They represent very different ideas of design. Iron Man’s armor is a sleek, streamlined, minimalist machine that is a high tech, red and yellow, hot rod of the skies. If Iron Man’s armor is a hot rod then the Fantasti-Car is a Volkswagen that is not streamlined but very practical. The Fantasti-Car has a modular design that looks goofy but allows the individual Fantastic Four members to break away from the main ship and fight more effectively as a group. Iron Man led to any number of armored imitators and again if imitation is the sincerest form of flattery then Iron Man’s armor wins. However, does Iron Man’s armor deserve to win in this sort of contest? Iron Man’s armor is more weapon than transport. I think because of this the Fantasti-Car is the winner in the Marvel universe. The modular design of the Fantasti-Car might have real life applications.
The Soviet Union often used tank riders instead of trucks for transportation during WW II. Men hung onto tanks for dear life. This was done due to a lack of trucks on the part of the Soviet Union. However, later many tactical advantages came out of this experience. The men could quickly jump from the tank and provide support to the tank and vice-versa in a way troops in trucks could not.
I wonder if there is the possibility of some sort of helicopter rider system in which special forces could break away from a helicopter using some sort of individual pod rocket system attached to the outside of the helicopter allowing for greater speed in exiting than the current rappelling system used by special forces. You enter the external rocket pod using a door on the inside of the helicopter to provide maximum protection until the moment of exit. The rocket pod also allows quicker dispersal of special forces around an area and the pod also offers some extra protection upon exiting the protection of the helicopter.
Conclusion
The winner of the DC competition is Superman’s rocket ship. The winner of the Marvel competition is the Fantasti-Car. I love the sixties campiness of the Fantasti-Car but iconic value beats campiness and Superman’s object wins as the coolest object of transportation! DC wins! In the course of this study something else stood out.
What is very interesting when comparing the objects of transportation of DC with Marvel is that there is a giant difference in the number of such objects. This difference in numbers took me by surprise and is serendipitous result of this study. DC has 117 objects of transportation. Marvel has 27 objects of transportation. I have done my best to be exhaustive in the compilation of both lists but still may have missed an important object of transportation here and there but the difference in numbers is so great that one must come to the conclusion transportation, as reflected in the numbers above, is more important in the DC universe than the Marvel universe. I have my own after the fact theory about this.
I am old enough to have read comic books from the golden age to the present and let me assure younger readers that comic books have changed tremendously! The Marvel universe is a relatively new universe compared to DC whose superheroes and story line foundations were largely created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in the sixties. I would argue one basic difference between Marvel and DC, especially in the sixties, was that Marvel focused a lot more on fights than the chase. For example, Superman spent way more time flying around looking for crooks than Thor. Thor quickly found his enemy and most of the issue focused on the fight. Thor fought characters like the Hulk. The Hulk does not flee from Thor that’s for sure. I actually bought the first issue in which Thor and the Hulk fought solo and even then I knew this was something different. For one thing Jack Kirby and Stan Lee created all these fight scene cartoon blurb sounds that had no equivalent in the DC universe. Jack Kirby used a lot more lines showing shock waves than anyone else. The fight looked more real and the key to this was actually using exaggerated action that is less real but interestingly looks more real due to the nature of the medium. I am into martial arts and have at least fifty books in the area with pictures that show each move of a kata and the pictures look pretty boring compared to a well done Jack Kirby punch or kick. I came to the conclusion that Marvel had better fight scenes and certainly longer fight scenes than DC. The difference in the quality and quantity of fight scenes between Marvel and DC has largely lessened over time.
I mentioned Doomsday and Superman in the introduction and their fight as chronicled in the Death of Superman storyline was generally one giant multi-issue series of fight scenes. I hate to admit it but I enjoyed the series! Remind me to grow up one of these days. For the record, Superman didn’t die despite the title of the series and I knew darn well Superman wouldn’t die and was amazed how my friends and family bought the lie hook line and sinker! And also for the record, Captain America and Batman are not going to stay dead!
The greater emphasis on fight scenes made Marvel more “modern” from their beginnings. Movies and TV were becoming more violent in the sixties and it made sense for comic books to go this route as well. Stan Lee and Jack Kirby were more attuned to modern media trends than their counterparts at DC at the time and this is one reason Marvel became such a success at the expense of DC. As a side note, I do not consider comic books overly violent at all compared to other media.
Comic books have become more violent from the sixties to the present but are still much less violent than other media. I am especially amazed at some of the cutesy violent video games on Facebook that have tremendous appeal to my nieces and nephews who are in the six to ten year old age group. I would much rather my nieces and nephews were reading the most violent DC or Marvel comic book out there than playing those horrible video games. I guess I am getting old because despite the best efforts of my nieces and nephews to explain the games, I had no interest.
The games are kind of Hello Kitty meets the Texas Chainsaw Massacre. You have these very cute cartoon characters wielding knifes or whatever and doing terrible things to other cute cartoon characters with blood and guts pouring out. I like my genres purer than that. I like Hello Kitty and I like the Texas Chainsaw Massacre but I really don’t care for Hello Kitty acting like Leatherface, the bad guy in the Texas Chainsaw Massacre. The games are very similar to Ren and Stimpy of The Simpsons fame but again are video games rather than a cartoon within a cartoon. I do think the interactive nature of a violent video game as opposed to a violent cartoon on TV is worrisome. Back to the topic of this post!
Another example of fight versus chase, many fifties Batman issues were reprinted in 80 page Giants in the sixties that I read when I was young and in many ways I grew up with this version of Batman. The fifties Batman is all about the chase! The Batman of the fifties invariably ended up in some sort of scenario with giant objects. Batman chased and fought crooks in an almost surrealistic landscape. Batmite was introduced at this time and used his reality warping powers not to fight Batman but to make the chase more interesting. There is no Marvel counterpart to this sort of chase.
I would argue the greater number of objects of transportation in the DC universe is due to DC having a golden age inheritance in which the chase was more important than the fight. Marvel does not share this inheritance and presumably would have more weapons than DC. Counting weapons is much harder than counting objects of transportation. I spent hours compiling lists of weapons in the DC and Marvel universe for my last post and am still not happy with the result. Weapons are ubiquitous in comic books. Objects of transportation are much smaller in number and easier to count definitively.
In this installment of DC vs. Marvel, I compare the weapons of the DC universe with the weapons of the Marvel universe. The weapons are broken into three power levels. Each universe will have a winner declared in each category and the universe that wins in the most categories is the overall winner. The weapons will be judged in the areas of aesthetic, conceptual and/or utilitarian design. In other words, which universe has the coolest weapon in each category? This is not a “which weapon is more powerful” contest.
The weapons in the top power category are called (1) Cosmic Weapons. These are the really powerful weapons of the DC or Marvel universe. A person with this sort of weapon can take on a team of superheroes such as the Justice League or the Avengers or perhaps even shake the foundations of the universe. A good example on the high end of a cosmic weapon would be the Infinity Gauntlet of the Marvel universe. With the Infinity Gauntlet you can take on an army of superheroes and more. Thanos used the Infinity Gauntlet to challenge the combined might of Galactus, the Stranger, the titan Epoch, Love and Hate, two Celestials, Master Order, Lord Chaos, Kronos, Death and Epoch. An upper end Cosmic Weapon can alter reality. The range of the weapon can vary from global, at least, to galactic. A cosmic weapon is even difficult to conceptualize using pseudo science. This is part of the attraction of a cosmic weapon.
A good example of a weapon on the low end of this category would be the Sun Eater used in the DC Universe. The Sun Eater can give the Legion of Superheroes a hard time but it will take forever to eat enough suns to change the foundations of the universe. I wouldn’t try to take on even Galactus alone with a Sun Eater. Galactus might eat the Sun Eater!
The next power level would be (2) Super Weapons. These weapons enable the wielder to take on a heavy duty superhero such as Superman on the upper end of the power scale. Green Lantern’s ring would be a good example of a super weapon on the upper end. You might be able to defeat Superman with a Green Lantern ring, probably not, but you would have a chance at least. On the low end, Captain Cold’s cold gun can let a super villain take on a hero like the Flash. I would strongly urge any potential super villains out there not to try to take on Superman with something like a cold gun. A Super Weapon cannot be constructed in the real world but can be conceptualized with pseudo science.
The last level is what I call (3) Street Weapons because they are the type of weapons you see used on the streets. Often they are normal weapons that have been enhanced with some tinkering. On a good day, you might be able to take on a half a dozen street crooks with one of these weapons but you probably need some special martial arts skill to do this. A good example of this type of weapon would be Daredevil’s Billy Club or Batman’s Batarang. A street weapon could be constructed in the real world but probably would have to be adapted considerably due to real life technical constraints.
1.0) COSMIC WEAPONS
1.1) Cosmic Weapons – DC
Some of the cosmic weapons in the DC universe include the
Anti-Life Equation
Book of Eternity
Miracle Machine
Spear of Destiny
Sun-Eater
Warworld
The Spear of Destiny is the spear used to pierce the side of Jesus Christ. Hitler used the Spear of Destiny in the DC Universe to keep the American superheroes from liberating Europe. Superman was given the task of killing the Spectre with the Spear of Destiny in one issue. The Spectre is the most powerful being in the DC Universe and anything that can kill him has to be pretty powerful. The Spear of Destiny gives the wielder the ability to control the minds of super powered individuals, massive reality warping and extremely powerful holy abilities
The Book of Eternity is a book that contains the story of existence. If absolute knowledge can lead to absolute power then does absolute corruption follow…? The wielder of the book also is granted vast magical powers.
This idea that knowledge is power is also explored in the concept of the Anti-Life Equation that will destroy all life. Darkseid is obsessed with the equation and according to him in one issue the equation is:
loneliness + alienation + fear + despair + self-worth ÷ mockery ÷ condemnation ÷ misunderstanding x guilt x shame x failure x judgment n=y where y=hope and n=folly, love=lies, life=death, self=dark side
If Darkseid says the equation then the victim has mathematical certainty that all life and existence are futile and that serving Darkseid is the only point in existence. This is mind control but mind control that can be shared via the internet and presumably even intergalactic communication systems that advanced races would possess. A master of this equation could rule the cosmos with but a sentence and a good media outlet. Those controlled could be asked to repeat the message to even more beings so the equation would spread exponentially. In short, the equation has metamemetic properties. For a definition of metamemetics please read:
Someday I will master the science of metamemetics and use this blog to rule the world!
Bwa-ha-ha-haaaa!
Two of the DC Cosmic Weapons are from the Legion of Superheroes storyline. The Sun-Eater is a living nebula with the ability to snuff out whole stars. The Sun-Eater was created by the Controllers to destroy unworthy worlds. The Miracle Machine was also created by the Controllers. The machine can convert thoughts into reality and was given to the Legion of Superheroes as a reward for destroying the Sun-Eater controlled by a renegade Controller. Braniac 5 used the machine to repel an alien invasion of Earth. The combined armed forces of Earth and the Legion of Superheroes were losing the war so this is a good weapon to have on your side. Warworld is a whole world filled with weapons not just on the surface but from the surface to the core. Superman was barely able to stop even one skyscraper sized missile launched at Earth and the Warworld presumably has countless missiles and all sorts of weapons. Presumably even a team of superheroes could not even begin to shield Earth from an attack from Warworld but I doubt you could change the cosmos with this weapon.
1.2) Cosmic Weapons – Marvel
Some of the cosmic weapons in the Marvel universe include
Casket of Ancient Winters
Cosmic Cube
Evil Eye of Avalon
Infinity Gauntlet
Serpent Crown
Odinsword
Ultimate Nullifier
Wand of Watoomb
The most powerful weapon in the Marvel universe is probably the Ultimate Nullifier. The Ultimate Nullifier is generally in the possession of Galactus. Korvac used the Ultimate Nullifier to destroy a universe in the multiverse. The drawback is that use of the weapon is suicidal. Whoever wields the Ultimate Nullifier is also destroyed!
A close second in the Marvel universe in terms of power might be the Infinity Gauntlet. You can take over the universe with the Infinity Gauntlet. Whether or not you could destroy a universe with the Infinity Gauntlet has not been determined. The cosmic cube was the most powerful weapon in Marvel universe for years and years since it could alter reality with a thought but later the range of this weapon was set at a global level.
Before the appearance of the cosmic cube the most powerful weapon in the Marvel universe was the largely forgotten Odinsword that even graced the cover of Thor #156. The Odinsword was supposed to end the universe if drawn from its scabbard and this idea really struck my imagination when I was a youth in the sixties. Later, Odin absorbed the life force of all Asgardians, blew up the enchanted armor known as the Destroyer, to gigantic size, and grabbed the Odinsword to take on the Celestials and got blown up for his troubles so this event shows this sword is not in the same league as the Ultimate Nullifier or the Infinity Gauntlet. Thanos was able to defeat two celestials and heavy-duty company with the Infinity Gauntlet. Korvac was able to destroy a whole universe despite the Celestials.
Dormammu once used the Evil Eye of Avalon to merge his dimension with that of Earth. The Eye of Avalon was hexed by the Scarlet Witch and the ensuing energy disaster temporarily destroyed Dormammu and drove Loki mad. Maybe the Evil Eye of Avalon is third in terms of power in the Marvel Universe.
Cosmic weapons in the Marvel Universe that allow you to take on a band of superheroes, but probably not take over the cosmos directly, include the Wand of Watoomb and the Serprent Crown. The Wand of Watoomb enables the wielder to mentally project and absorb mystical energy, create force fields, control weather, open dimensional portals, observe events in other locations, and heal wounds. The Serpent Crown gives the user superhuman strength, telepathy, mind control, telekinesis, the ability to cast illusions, the power to project destructive bolts of mystical energy and even the mental ability to manipulate matter and energy. The Casket of Ancient Winters is Asgardian and allows the wielder to control infinite cold. A very specialized weapon but anything of infinite power belongs in the cosmic range.
1.3) Winner
For sheer originality the Anti-Life Equation wins! The ultimate cosmic weapon would not be concrete but abstract. This confirms what you always knew in your heart, algebra can end all life in the universe! E=MC2 is an equation that has changed the world more than just about anything. I think of the Anti-Life Equation as a super advanced version of E=MC2. I am sure just such an equation is just around the corner in real life.
2.0) SUPER WEAPONS
2.1) Super Weapons – DC
Adam Strange’s Ray Gun
Aquaman’s Hook
Black Lantern Ring
Black Manta’s Battlesuit
Blue Beetle’s Scarab
Blue Devil’s Trident of Lucifer
Blue Lantern Ring
Braniac’s Space Ships
Braniac’s Force Field
Calculator Battlesuit
Captain Boomerang’s Trick Boomerangs
Captain Cold’s Cold Gun
Copperhead’s Armor
Deadshot’s Wrist Mounted Firearms
Disintegrator Sphere
Dr. Fate’s Helm of Nabu
Emerald Eye of Ekron – Emerald Empress
Entropy Aegis Armor
Exectutioner’s Atomic Axe
Fiddler’s Fiddle
Golden Girdle of Gaea
Golden Glider’s Iceskates
Green Lantern Power Ring
Hawkgirl’s Dart Gun
Hawkman’s Protonic Lance
Hawkgirl’s Wings
Hawkman’s Wings
Heat Wave’s Gun
HERO Dial
Icicle’s Cold Gun
Indigo Power Ring
Kanjar Ro’s Gamma Gong
Kinetic Hammer
Lasso of Lightning
Mageddon
Mega-Rod
Mirror Master’s Trick Mirrors
Mr. Freeze Cold Gun
Orange Lantern Ring
Orb of Ra
Orion’s Astro-Harness
Phantom Zone Projector
Piped Pipers flute
Psi-Scimitar
Psycho Pirate’s Medusa Mask
Qwa-Bolts
Red Power Ring
Sandman’s Sand of Sleep
Sandman’s Dreamstone
Sandman’s Helm of Dreams
Sargon the Sorcerer’s Ruby of Life
Sonigun
Soultaker Sword
Spear of Lonea
Star Man’s Cosmic Rod
Star Sapphire
Steel’s Apokolips Armor
Toastmasters
Trident of Neptune
Trident of Poseidon
Trident of Triton
Weather Wizard’s Wand
Webgun
Wonder Woman’s Bracelets of the Aegis
Wonder Woman’s Lasso of Truth
Xantha Charge
Yellow Power Ring
The two most famous weapons in the DC list are probably Green Lantern’s power ring and Wonder Woman’s Lasso of Truth. Recently, DC decided to add a whole rainbow of power rings to their universe and I think this is diluting the brand. What’s next a purple Hulk? The creator of Wonder Woman also invented the lie detector! The Lasso of Truth is the ultimate lie detector! I think both weapons are great but slightly prefer the Lasso of Truth due to its interesting origins.
2.2) Super Weapons – Marvel
Beetle’s Armor
Black Blade of Baghdad
Black Knight’s Ebony Blade
Black Knight’s Ebony Dagger
Black Knight’s Power Lance
Black Knight’s Shield of Night
Blacklash’s Whip
Blizzard’s Suit
Bloodaxe
Big Wheel
Caliburn
Captain America’s Shield
Chorus Sentry
Cobalt Bomb
Controller’s Slave Discs
Convincer
Cosmic Control Rod
Crimson Dynamo’s Armor
Crimson Gem of Cyttorak
Cyclone’s Suit
Destroyer (Enchanted Armor)
Doctor Octopus Tentacles
Dr. Doom’s Armor
Dragonfang Sword
Eagle Shield
Electroplasmic Wand
Energy Shield
Excalibur
Exorcist Gun
Eye of Agamotto
Firebrand Suit
Firepower’s Armor
Firesword
Fiver Fingers of Annilation
Gamma Bomb
Ghost Rider’s Chain
Ghost’s Battlesuit
Golden Mace of Hercules
Grim Reaper’s Scythe
Guantlets of Ares
Hofund
Hurricane’s Wings
Iron Man Armor (Earth-200151)
Iron Man’s Armor
Iron Monger’s Armor
Jet Parlyzer
Justiciar
Kurokaze
Mandarin’s Ten Rings
Mandroid Armor
Megingjord
Mirage’s Holographic Suit
Mysterio’s Helmet with Holographic Projector
Mysterio’s Gloves and Boots that Emit Hallucinogenic Gas
Odin’s Thrudstok
Polestar’s Magnetic Gauntlets
Pyro’s Battlesuit and Flamethrowers
Quantum Bands
Ringmaster’s Top Hat with Portable Mind-control Device
Rhino’s Polymer Armor
Ronan the Accuser’s Universal Weapon
Sakki
Scell
Scorcher’s Suit and Flamethrowers
Shocker’s Gauntlets
Silver Surfer’s Surfboard
Son of Satan’s Trident
Spymater’s Battlesuit
Staff of Polar Power
Star-Blazer
Star Shield
Stilt-Man’s Armor
Stormbreaker
Streamsword
Sun Shredder
Sunbeam Ray Gun
Surtur’s Twilight Sword
Sword of Bone
Sword of Fangs
Sword of Frey
Sword of Kamnu
Sword of Light
Sword of Might
Sword of Night
Sword of Ultimate Shadow
Swordman’s Sword
Taskmaster’s Solid Energy Weapon
Thor’s Hammer Mjolnir
Titanium Man’s Armor
Ulik’s Pounders
Ultra-Diode Ray
Unicorn’s Power Horn
Vulture’s Wings
Whiplash’s Gauntlets and Battlesuit
Wizard’s Power Gloves
Wrecker’s Crowbar
The three most famous weapons in the Marvel list are Thor’s hammer, Captain America’s shield and Iron Man’s armor. Captain America, Iron Man and Thor are all members of the Avengers so you often get to see these incredible weapons together in one great comic book.
2.3) Winner
I loved Iron Man the movie! One of the major subplots of the movie is the creation of Iron Man’s armor. Could you do this with any other weapon in the DC or Marvel universe? I don’t think so. Iron Man’s armor is the coolest super weapon because of its story line and plausibility. DC and Marvel are tied at this point and the next weapon decides which universe has the coolest super weapons.
3.0) STREET LEVEL WEAPONS
3.1) Street Level – DC
Azrael’s Armor
Batman’s Batarang
Batman’s Utility Belt
Catwoman’s Cat o Nine Tails Whip
Catwoman’s Retractable Claws
Deathstroke’s Staff
Green Arrow’s Trick Arrows
Hawkman’s Claw of Horus
Huntress’ Crossbow
Joker’s Acid Squirting Flower
Joker’s Cyanide Pies
Joker’s Electrified Joy Buzzer
Joker’s Exploding Cigars with Nitroglycerine
Joker’s Razor Sharp Throwing Cards
Lobo’s Chain and Hook
Penguin’s Trick Umbrellas
Robin’s Battle Staff
Sandman’s Gas Gun
The three coolest street level weapons in the DC universe all come from the Batman family and include the batarang, utility belt and the Joker’s squirting flower. Joker’s Squirting flower doesn’t squirt water but squirts Joker venom or acid.
The coolest street level weapon in the Marvel universe is Daredevil’s Billy club. A close second might be the Green Goblin’s equipment that led to the Hobgoblin who used the same equipment. The Green Goblin glider probably belongs in the super weapons category. The pumpkin bombs definitely belong in the street level category since they are basically grenades with a gimmick.
3.3) Winner
The Batman family sets the standard for street weapons in comic books! The difficult choice is trying to decide which Batman family weapon is the coolest. I actually created a utility belt! I was living in Taiwan at the time and Taiwan is beset with typhoons, earthquakes and the threat of invasion from mainland China. More as a conceptual exercise than anything else, I made a utility belt designed to facilitate survival in all three of Taiwan’s scenarios. My buddies got a real kick out of the belt and made various suggestions. The emphasis of the belt was survival rather than military usage so my belt had totally different stuff than Batman’s belt. I actually think the belt I created would be semi useful. I vote Batman’s utility belt as the coolest street weapon since it is actually possible to create to some extent.
Conclusion
The Anti-Life Equation is the best cosmic weapon. Iron Man’s Armor is the best super weapon. Batman’s utility belt is the coolest street level weapon. DC wins two out of three categories.
Dr. Hugh Fox III 