Versus # 6 - Superboy vs. Invincible

The Battle of the Next Generation...


Versus is back! That’s right everybody, you were mistaken if you thought we were finished with our battles between brilliant behemoth…battlers…because…balls…All right, screw alliteration. Here we place some of our favorite characters against some of our other favorite characters and decides who walks away victorious.

I wanted to hit it big with the latest edition of Versus, a real hard core match up between two heavy weights that would send shockwaves through the cities, smash windows miles away, a good ol’ fashioned super brawl. But to keep it interesting, we can’t just go with the most obvious choices. And here to help decide this contest along with myself, SupaScoot, are B!K! alum's Toni Smith and Jared Zygarlicke. This time it’s DC vs. Image, and we are happy to present the Brawl in the Mall! Umm… The Battle with the Cattle!!! No, that’s not right either…Fine…fine… It’s a fight, between these two guys:

Superboy (Conner Kent) vs. Invincible (Mark Grayson)

JZ

At first glance this match-up seems to be A: too close to tell and B: something DC and Image should seriously consider as a team up book (please). Superboy (Conner Kent) is the hybrid clone of Lex Luthor and the Man of Steel with his Kryptonian DNA slowly taking over his human physiology. Invincible (Mark Grayson) is the son of Omni-Man (i.e. Kirkman’s Superman) and a human woman, with his Viltrumite DNA slowly taking over his human physiology. Yeah. They’re basically the same. But only one can win. And I know which because I am a nerd.

First lets talk Superboy. “Born” the test-tube melding of DNA from the Man of Steel and a human being (later retconned to be none other than Lex Luthor), which gave young Conner one or two psychological problems, Superboy uses his powers to fight crime and live up to his mentor. The powers are where things get a little confusing. Originally Superboy had an approximation of Superman’s powers in the form of something called “tactile telekinesis (TTK).” With this, he generated a telekinetic force field allowing for some measure of flight, invulnerability, and strength. Nowadays, however, the Kryptonian in him is altering his power-set. Superboy has heat vision, x-ray vision, and super hearing. On top of that he’s gained strength and invulnerability akin to what an actual teenaged Kryptonian should have.

Mark Grayson is the son of Earth’s greatest hero, Omni-Man, who, at the ripe age of 17, discovers he has superpowers much like his father’s. This comes as no surprise to anyone, and Mark quickly dons the identity of Invincible and fights crime (like every normal kid with superpowers should). Over the years Mark’s powers of flight, super strength, and invulnerability have been tested and built upon, allowing him to pack one hell of a punch. But Mark’s true power lies in his attitude. On more than one occasion he’s been outnumbered or overpowered, but he never backs down and never stops fighting. Even when he knows he’s going to lose (the Conquest fight anyone?), Mark never gives up and refuses to quit. The combination of determination and abilities make him an incredibly tough fight.

Ok, that’s out of the way. Lets talk similarities and fight. Both of these characters share a similar origin story of young kid burdened with immense power (not the most original), but who also have something to prove because of the legacy they’re following (Superman/Omni-Man). Here is where their character comes into play and the first place I think Invincible has the upper hand. Conner can fight, no doubt about it, but in the past he’s let his emotions get the better of him in a bad way (i.e. not fighting or pussing out because he’s the evil hybrid of Superman and Luthor, boo fucking hoo). Invincible also let’s his emotions loose from time to time, but when he does it, there are usually holes in things and/or people when the tantrum’s over. Invincible curbs his emotions into fuel, allowing him to go completely crazy and tear shit up.

The characters also have similar powers, with the exception of all the things Conner can do with his eyes, but that doesn’t mean they’re equal. Conner is afraid of letting loose his abilities and hurting those around him. Mark is also afraid of this, but does it almost every-other issue. Both, however, possess compassion. Because of this it might take a bit of prodding in order for Conner and Mark to fully throw down, but when they break (and they will, they’re still basically kids) they’ll give it everything they’ve got. Which brings me to my last point and victor. Invincible is stronger and more fierce than Superboy. In fact I’m going to go so far as to say that they have pretty much already fought each other kinda. The fight during Infinite Crisis between Conner and Superboy Prime is pretty much what would happen if he fought Invincible. Invincible has gone one-to-one with some tough baddies, and usually gets the utter shit kicked out of him. But those beatings make him stronger and more determined to never let it happen again. Superboy has faced an incredibly difficult enemy and how did he win? Oh yeah. He died. Whoops. In a smack down I think that Superboy would give it his all, but that wouldn’t be enough to beat back the onslaught of absolute fury that is Invincible.

JZ’s Winner: Invincible. Hands down.

Toni Smith

As far as match ups go: this is one of the most even of the bunch: we got two younger heroes that are half near-omnipotent alien (Mark Grayson the child of a human and a Viltrumite and Kon-El as some sort of cloned thingamajig with two daddies and a test tube, said fathers being Lex Luthor and Superman.) Both have super strength, invulnerability, super speed and can fly; but Superboy can also do that tactile telekinesis deal and has the standard Kryptonian power-set.

Sure Superboy has a wider array of powers, but his powers are pretty much set at where they are; Invincible on the other hand, can train his abilities to have a greater capacity: if he does a shit ton of laps around the planet he can fly farther, bench press some mountains and shit and he’s stronger, have him eat a cabbage patch and suddenly he can fart a tornado (you might of missed that issue). This level of training and dedication makes Invincible a more formidable opponent, he’s even beaten the greatest warrior of his father’s planet TWICE. Superboy couldn’t even defeat himself, or the alternate version of either himself or the actual Superman from an alternate history that was erased but wasn’t and somehow was able to punch reality to bring back the retarded Robin and do some other alterations to DC’s already complicated history, AKA Superboy Prime.

The winner of this fight is Invincible: no contest. And not just because Invincible is stronger, but also because Invincible isn’t such a terribly shitty character that even Peter David couldn’t fix him. Superboy sucks ass, straight Mandrill ass. He’s so shitty the greedy ass Schuster family doesn’t even want him; they dropped the whole Superboy lawsuit they had with DC because they realized that this douche-bag wasn’t worth a dime.

Invincible is an awesome character; he is the star of one of the greatest Superhero comics of the 21st century. On the level of story quality alone: Invincible would probably whomp just about any ass that goes tête-à-tête with him.

Now if you were to put Invincible up against Spider-Boy, that’d be a fucking challenge.

Toni Smith’s Winner: Invincible. No Contest…

SupaScoot

As usual, I’m going to start with who I think the better character is. This can almost be the toughest part in choosing a winner, because what defines a great character? Personalities, cool powers, great storylines, a supporting cast? While Conner has had some great stories and has proven to be an integral part of the DCU, I think I have to give this one to Mark. Invincible hits hard in a lot of areas, whether it’s the fanboy mentality that he shares, the tragic situations he is forced into, or the growth his character has endured, it’s always a compelling read. Superboy has developed his character quite a bit as well, but honestly; it’s a lot of whining that I could do without. Buck up son.

Now it’s time for the nitty gritty. Who would win in a fight? This would be an epic battle started in the air, until powerful punches from either side would send the combatants crashing to the ground, blowing out windows in the surrounding areas. Superboy would send debris flying with his TTK at Invincible, who would easily smash his way through it, speeding in with a hard punch, sending the fight back into the air. Heat vision would blast away at Invincible, staggering him and allowing Superboy to get a few super speed hammer punches in, but Invincible can take it. The battle would continue, a possible victory passing back and forth between the two competitors.

This is a battle that could last for hours, but unfortunately, Superboy’s cloned body can’t handle an extended exertion of his energy, as he isn’t able to metabolize the sunlight as quickly as his namesake. Invincible’s endurance has been proven time and time again, not to mention his sheer power when he gets pissed off. So I think in the end, with both combatants bruised, bloodied, and beaten, Superboy would fall to Invincible, who would then probably just throw him in to space and fly shakily home.

SupaScoot’s Winner: Mark Grayson, Invincible

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Winner - Invincible by a score of 3-0

SupaScoot's Closing Statement:

DC suffers another loss, but what chance do you really have against a guy named Invincible? No chance, sir. No chance...

<--- Versus # 5