Since his creation in DC Comics in 1938, Superman has been the standard-bearer of the superhero genre, something that has been made clear through his best stories. While he’s best known for his solo adventures and Justice League stories, some of the hero’s best adventures revolved around team-ups and crossovers. From encounters with the gods to traversing iconic movie universes, the Man of Steel has proven himself a noble hero whenever needed.
Superman stands alongside superheroes like Captain America and Spider-Man for his relentlessly heroic character traits, relatable personal life, and exciting adventures. With eighty years of history behind him, he has amassed arguably the richest, most entertaining and fascinating life in comics. While many readers love Batman’s flashy stories, these team-up and crossover comics prove that the Man of Tomorrow is DC’s greatest hero.
10 Superman vs. Alien II: God of War
Chuck Dixon, John Bogdanov and Kevin Nowlan
In the 1990s, Dark Horse launched a series of collaborations with DC and Marvel, leveraging their licenses to publish iconic franchises such as Predator and Alien. The first of these was Superman vs. Aliens. While the original miniseries was a good read, it pales in comparison to its sequel, God is war. The four issue miniseries follows the Man of Steel teaming up with the New Gods to fight Darkseid, who has created a Parademon/Xenomorph hybrid army to overcome the New Genesis.
Superman vs. Alien II Takes one of the hero’s most deadly enemies and mixes him with the most terrifying monster in cinema, the Xenomorph. Combining the epic cosmic battle between Apokolips and New Genesis with the ultimate killing machine and throwing Superman into the mix simply worked and gave readers one of the hero’s most action-packed stories yet.
9 Superman: Worlds
Roy Thomas and Michael Lark
DC’s Elseworlds imprint adapts the universe’s best heroes into new and dynamic settings, including classic works of literature. Where Batman was relegated to Dracula’s world, Superman was given a war of the world Reimagining, channeling HG Wells’ best stories into DC lore. Here, readers are taken back to Siegel and Schuster’s version of the hero as he saves America from a Martian invasion.
Superman: Worlds A brilliant example of writing a character in another universe without compromising either one. The Man of Steel is perfectly suited to playing 1940s action comics with an alien tripod, and the story makes a point of highlighting a vulnerable hero who tries as hard as his god-level modern self.
8 Superman/Tarzan: Children of the Jungle
Chuck Dixon, Carlos Meglia and Dave Stewart
From his upbringing in the Soviet Union to Apokolips, Superman’s story has been reimagined in many ways. One of the best — and most creative — of these was Superman/TarzanA story that reimagines the Man of Steel’s origins in the jungles of Africa instead of the farm of Ma and Pa Kent in Smallville. As baby Kal-El is now raised by apes, Lord Greystroke survives his shipwreck, and is raised by humans, later crossing paths with Kryptonians and becoming an explorer.
On the face of it, the idea behind it Superman/Tarzan: Children of the Jungle Closure can be difficult, but the Dark Horse miniseries does a great job of making it work. As a hero of the jungle, this version of Superman brings the same steadfast protectiveness and kind-hearted nature he usually displays from the metropolis to rural Africa.
7 Superman vs. Predator
David Michelini and Alex Malev
Like many iconic superheroes, Superman took on the hunter under the Dark Horse. As stated in the series Superman vs. PredatorMan of Steel travels to the jungles of South America to investigate a mysterious illness that has taken a group of explorers after they discover an ancient Yautza ship, its inhabitants in stasis. However, when an alien hunter awakens, he hunts down the group — and makes Kal-El his prime target.
Superman vs. Predator Takes what worked well in the classic 1987 movie and adds it to the superhero genre, albeit with a weakened Superman suffering from the effects of a virus. The story shows that, even when weakened, the Man of Tomorrow is a resourceful hero, who can fall back on his wits when his strength fails him.
6 The Incredible Hulk vs. Superman
Roger Stern, Steve Rudd and Al Milgrom
As the most iconic of all DC/Marvel crossover comics, The Incredible Hulk vs. Superman Reimagines the two protagonists as coexisting in the same universe. When Thaddeus Ross and Lex Luthor team up in an attempt to control the Hulk’s immense power, the latter manipulates the Green Behemoth to fight Superman. What follows is one of the most epic comic book battles of all time, as the two heroes smash their way through buildings and mountains alike.
The Incredible Hulk vs. Superman Demonstrating Superman’s intelligence, compassion, and value of human life, he makes a point to ensure their destruction so as not to claim any innocent lives. In the end, it is through his empathy and reasoning that the Man of Steel is able to talk the Hulk back into control and bring Bruce Banner back under control.
5 Superman/Shazam: First Thunder
Judd Winnick and Josh Middleton
Superman/Shazam: First Thunder Following the Man of Steel teams up with Captain Marvel while their respective nemeses, Luthor and Sivana team up. After foiling a series of crimes and fighting a group of giant robots, the two sane heroes deal with a mysterious cult after summoning a group of monsters.
First Thunder Join two of DC’s most wholesome, all-American heroes in their quest for their respective cities and rogues gallery. Blending science fiction with magic and fantasy, the team-up is everything fans of both characters could want in a crossover, one that eschews the classic trope of two heroes fighting.
4 Superman/Spider-Man
Jim Shooter, John Buscema and Joe Sinnott
Superman vs. Spider-Man follows an alliance between Doctor Octopus and Lex Luthor, who use a mind-controlling device called the Hypno-Blaster to trick the heroes into battle. Realizing they’ve been fooled, Peter and Clark confront their enemies, aboard a space-based satellite, culminating in an epic showdown.
Thematically speaking, some superheroes from rival companies share similar themes and character traits to Superman and Spider-Man, making for a perfect crossover. Although their power levels had to be adjusted to make the story work, the crossover does a great job of establishing the heroes as natural partners.
3 Superman and Batman vs. Aliens and Predators
Mark Schultz and Ariel Olivetti
Superman and Batman vs. Aliens and Predators Follows the discovery of the shipwrecked Yautza in a volcano and attempts to investigate it. Things take a turn for the worse when the creatures believe you are the sun god, sending Batman to represent Superman to the alien hunters. With Xenomorph and Yautza, both heroes forced to weigh the value of alien life, their differing philosophies come into focus.
An important part of this crossover comes when, to Batman’s horror, Superman insists on saving the Xenomorphs’ lives despite their dangerous nature. Here, the endless value of the Man of Steel’s life is made clear, and readers get some great moments like the hunters in the deserted castle to make things interesting.
2 Batman/Superman: World’s Best
Mark Waid and Dan Mora
Batman/Superman: World’s Finest follows the shared adventures of the Man of Steel and the Caped Crusader as they tackle one threat after another. Starting with the action-packed “Devil Neza,” the series immediately gave readers some instant classic moments between the friends, such as the Super-Bat team-up.
While Waid and Morar’s series contains a variety of stories, it’s best enjoyed as its own thing, serving as a callback to DC’s younger days. The series does a great job of showing the contrast between the brooding Dark Knight and the hopeful Man of Tomorrow, and deserves praise for including the universe’s most obscure heroes.
1 Superman/Batman: Public Enemy
Jeph Loeb and Ed McGuinness
2003 Superman/Batman The series quickly hands the best of the world some of their best stories, starting with the instant classic story arc “Public Enemies.” The debut takes place in an America where Lex Luthor has been elected President of the United States. Refusing to obey the rules of the meta human billionaire, Superman and Batman become criminals, fleeing from Luthor’s team of superheroes. When they discover that a kryptonite meteor is headed for Earth, the two resolve to save Earth from destruction — from Luthor’s lust for power.
“Public Enemies” is one of the best examples of Superman’s commitment to the American Way that trumps his loyalty to the government, accepting the threat of Luthor — even if he’s elected. While the story does a good job of reminding readers of Batman’s intelligence, it also shows that, ultimately, The Dark Knight is nothing but the Man of Steel when it comes to planetary threats.