Superman vs. The Amazing Spider-Man: The Battle of the Century

Superman: One-Shots

by Gerry Conway (Writer), Ross Andru (Penciller), Dick Giordano (Inker)

Superman rescues Metropolis from a giant-robot attack by his old foe Lex Luthor, who manages to send some sort of stolen device to one of his strongholds for safekeeping. Elsewhere (in New York), Spider-Man battles and defeats his longtime foe Doctor Octopus and his henchmen. Sent to a federal "super-security" prison (designed for the incarceration of super-villains), Luthor and Doctor Octopus agree to combine forces in ordier to conquer the world and kill both of the men who put them behind bars. In a matter of minutes, combining their abilities, the two super-villains escape.

Newspaper photographer Peter Parker (Spider-Man's alter ego) and Mary Jane Watson attend a press conference in New York City that features a new satellite, ComSat, capable of disrupting global weather patterns. Journalists Clark Kent (Superman's alter ego) and Lois Lane also attend, arriving by plane from Metropolis. When Lois climbs onto a catwalk to get a better view of the satellite, she slips and falls. Peter saves Lois' life and introduces her to Mary Jane. Mary Jane gets a little jealous of Lois Lane, who reassures her that she is not interested in Peter Parker. Then, Lex Luthor, disguised as Superman, swoops in and shoots a teleportation ray out of his Superman mask, teleporting Lois and Mary Jane to an unknown destination. Luthor flies away, and both Peter and Clark soon follow him and change into their respective costumes.

Superman mistakenly blames Spider-Man for the disappearance of the two women. The two begin to fight, but dodge each other's punches. Superman flies away at super-speed, evading Spider-Man's next attack, while trying to deduce what is happening. Luthor fires a gun at Spider-Man, irradiating the hero's costume with light similar to that emitted by a red sun. The red-sun radiation negates Superman's invulnerability in regards to Spider-Man, allowing Spider-Man's punches to hurt Superman until the radiation dissipates, and Superman is again invulnerable. When his punches, instead of staggering Superman, suddenly have little effect, Spider-Man calls off the fight. Realizing they have been deceived, Superman, suspecting a plot by Luthor and Doc Ock, proposes they amicably join forces to solve the mystery and rescue the women.

Moving to Africa, Spider-Man and Superman battle Doctor Octopus, Lex Luthor, and a native African warrior endowed by Luthor with super-strength and endurance and a red-sun irradiated sword. Spider-Man and Superman defeat the warrior only by combining their powers and enlisting help from some native tribesmen. Spider-Man steals an Injustice Gang spaceship from Luthor's base in Africa and heads into outer space with Superman to confront Doctor Octopus and Luthor. The supervillains have used the Injustice Gang's Satellite Headquarters' computers in conjunction with the device stolen by Luthor to agitate the Earth's atmosphere with a combination of sonic waves and lasers, causing huge tornadoes and hurricanes worldwide. Superman is felled by the beam's high-pitched sonics and Spider-Man loses consciousness when the spaceship's oxygen is compromised.

The heroes awaken aboard the Injustice Gang Satellite, where Mary Jane and Lois are held captive. Superman defeats Doctor Octopus by tearing off two of his robotic arms and shattering his eyeglasses, while Spider-Man uses psychology to try to divide the villains. Doctor Octopus realizes that Luthor's scheme, if allowed to succeed, will effectively destroy human civilization, leaving them with "nothing to rule" even if they prevail against their heroic nemeses. He uses one of his robotic arms to destroy the weather machine's control console, stopping the potential disaster.

An enraged Luthor attacks and defeats Doctor Octopus. While Superman returns to Earth to stop a gigantic tidal wave from destroying most of the East Coast of the United States, Spider-Man defeats Luthor. Superman returns to the satellite, where Spider-Man has bound the two villains with his webs. Congratulating themselves on a job well done, Superman and Spider-Man take the villains into custody. In an epilogue, Clark and Lois go on a double date with Peter and Mary Jane.

A minor subplot of the story involves a barroom meeting between Daily Planet publisher and WGBS network chief Morgan Edge and Daily Bugle editor J. Jonah Jameson, in which the two irascible boss figures compare complaints about their employees Kent and Parker, and their respective propensities to suddenly disappear in the midst of crisis situations.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Marvel, Superman, Dc Comics, Spider Man, Superheroes

92 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1976

About the author

Gerard Francis Conway (Gerard F. Conway) is an American writer of comic books and television shows. He is known for co-creating the Marvel Comics' vigilante the Punisher and scripting the death of the character Gwen Stacy during his long run on The Amazing Spider-Man. At DC Comics, he is known for co-creating the superhero Firestorm and others, and for writing the Justice League of America for eight years. Conway wrote the first major, modern-day intercompany crossover, Superman vs. the Amazing Spider-Man.

Reviews

[Jon Nakapalau · Rating 5 out of 5]

Let me take you back: 1976 - right before summer vacation - the Bicentennial of the US - sneaking into the movie theater to see Taxi Driver - the buzz over Rocky - Peter Frampton coming alive - the Olympics - ...and this comic! Every boy in my neighborhood had a copy (the girls just rolled their eyes when we would start arguing about who was better). Hard for me to 'rate' this comic - it holds so many good memories for me. Around the pinball machine after school - the debate would go on until it was time to go home for dinner. Miss those days so much.

[Sophia · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first DC/Marvel crossover!
I really enjoyed the overall story, it flowed well plus seeing these two iconic heroes together was awesome!

However, the way they broke up each section felt a little weird to begin with. In saying that, I do understand why it was done that way.

I was surprised at how many two-page illustrations there were but they looked so cool and did make this comic seem a lot grander than the usual comics the two companies had published previously.

[Little Timmy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I remember when marvel and DC came out with these oversized Treasury editions. They were a huge event and the stories were pretty well done. Good art and writing by some of the big names in the industry made them a nice read. Recommended

[Tony Calder · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the original crossover between Marvel and DC and still one of the best. In the mid-70s Superman had returned to the number 1 spot on DC's most popular list as the had finished nearly a decade ago, and Spider-Man continued to be Marvel's number one, and was soon to launch a third title.

Clearly, a mixture of the two universes has to ignore a lot of continuity from both universes, but that doesn't really matter for a one-off story, and Gerry Conway has written an excellent story which rings true for both heroes (at least, as they were then). Of course, they need their main opponents, which is obviously Luthor for Superman. Spidey's main opponent is less obvious but, with the Green Goblin dead at the time in Marvel continuity. The artwork from Ross Andru and Dick Giordano is also excellent.

[Machiavelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review is for the Treasury edition that just came out.

This was an absolute blast to read. The oversized treasury format really lets the art and colors shine — every page feels bigger, bolder, and more special than a standard comic. The story itself isn’t an all-time classic, but that’s not really the point here. What makes this so fun is the sheer novelty and historical weight of seeing DC and Marvel’s two biggest icons collide on the page. As a piece of comics history and a visually gorgeous spectacle, it’s 100% worth checking out and an easy recommend for any fan of either character.

[Michael Mills · Rating 4 out of 5]

The longitudinal zero point for superhero crossovers so there's little that will surprise you, but there's a lot of innocent fun to be had with it. The artwork's lovely as well, particularly for the input of the then-current artists for the regular characters.

If there's one criticism it's that Spider-Man's too often the comic relief, while Doctor Octopus very much plays second fiddle to Lex Luthor (honestly, it's hard to see why Lex bothers with him). False equivalence can be a problem in crossovers, but it doesn't really feel like Spider-Man gets to prove his worth.

These are minor criticisms, though, for a story aimed squarely at the kids, and it captures a child's sense of adventure and escalation. For the children of 1976, the book's 90-something pages must have felt like a true epic. I felt very young reading this.

[Anurag · Rating 5 out of 5]

When two legendary superheroes owned by two rival publisher companies come together in one single book..the result is stupendo-fantastico-fabulo-magnificience...(sorry for that crazy word!).In addition to the heroes, we see Lex Luthor and Doc Oc working together!

A great story, really a well worked on! Also the art is simple and beautiful like 1970-80s style.

I consider this book one of the classics in comic books history.

I'm proud to say that I have read this book at least once in my lifetime!!

A must-must-must read for anyone who's been the fan of Superman or Spiderman or of overall superhero genre! I couldn't find the book, so read it online. However, try to find a hard copy. Better if you could own it. Needless to say it'll cost a lot!!

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's been over 35 years since I purchased my copy of this, which I still have. It is the first monumental crossover of the two major comic book publishers of the time. Their main iconic characters go head to head then join forces to battle the villain team up of Lex Luther and Doctor Octopus. This is definitely a comic representation of times gone by. The book doesn’t take itself too seriously; it has an innocence and whimsy that you don't see in the dark and brooding comics of today. Since the publication of this book, both headliners Superman and now Peter Parker have been killed off in their respective comic books. The artwork is bold a primo example of comic art of the 70's.

[Taha · Rating 3 out of 5]

-Spiderman vs .......... (noktalı yeri kafanıza göre doldurabilirsiniz) temalı hikayelerde hep aynı kalıbı kullanıyorlar sanırım. Olaylar hep aynı gelişiyor. Düşman bile hep Lex Luthor.
-Gerçi bunları Superman v Batman filmine ve bu çizgi romana göre söylüyorum ama ikisi arasındaki bu benzerlikten (hatta "aynı"lıktan) sonra başka "Batman vs ........" materyaliyle işim olmayacak sanırım.
-3 yıldızı da 1976 basımı bu çizgi romanın bu olay örgüsünü ilk kullanan eser olduğunu farz ederek verdim.

[Óscar Trobo · Rating 2 out of 5]

De pequeño recuerdo haber leído impresionado este tebeo en la edición de Novaro, La debí prestar y no me lo devolvieron y me compré la reedición de Zinco del 89. La relectura fue una decepción.

Leído ahora, pues más o menos lo mismo. No es una gran historia. El dibujo es tan correcto que da grima. Un cómic tan mítico como aburrido,

[Douglas · Rating 4 out of 5]

This wasn't what i was expecting i thought this would be a dumbed down book with nothing but fight scenes but i was wrong this book is great the story is well executed the team up of spidey and superman just works so well the artwork is fantastic and the ending is a satisfying way to close the book

[Demetrius Sherman · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you like this one, you may like Superman VS. Muhammad Ali.
Superman vs Spiderman is just fun for all ages. Action and comedy like the 1970's first two Superman films. Just fun and a must read for comic book fans. I quit reading comics some time ago, but I remember this and a few others.

[Indah Threez Lestari · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lebih suka pairing Batman/Spiderman, chemistry-nya lebih terasa karena sifatnya bertolak belakang.

Clark dan Peter sifatnya 11-12. Pairing musuhnya Lex/Octopus juga setipe.

[Paul Griggs · Rating 5 out of 5]

From a simpler age of comic book story telling the legendary first meeting of the greatest heroes of two companies, introducing a world where DC and Marvel coexist. Most enjoyable.

[Tamir · Rating 2 out of 5]

A nice, though outdated crossover between the most notorious superheroes manking has ever known (when excluding Batman :P).

[Adrian Santiago · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh.

[Alejandro · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first DC/Marvel super-hero crossover!


I haven’t bought this particular comic book per se, but I did buy the “DC vrs Marvel” Omnibus Vol 1, and this story is featured there. I’ll do a review of the ómnibus later, but I want to make individual reviews of each crossover stories contained there.


Creative Team

Writer: Gerry Conway

Illustrator: Ross Andru (but uncredited Neal Adams redraw Superman figures and John Romita Sr. redraw some Marvel characters’ faces)


SUPERMAN V. SPIDER-MAN: DAWN OF CROSSOVERS

While it’s true that this is the first superhero crossover made by DC Comics and Marvel Comics, actually there was an earlier collaboration by both comic book companies, publishing MGM’s Marvelous of Oz (in 1975), of course, I don’t know why the heck you needed the two major comic book companies working togethere to publish one comic book adaptation of Wizard of Oz.

This idea began as a concept for a theatrical film featuring Superman and Spider-Man, it’s not clear if animated or live-action, but since the live-action movie of Superman was already in production, and the TV series of Spider-man was in development too, it was decided that it was better to do a comic book doing the first ever superhero crossover between the two major comic book companies featuring the two major household characters at the time (at that point Superman was indeed more popular than Batman in DC (but there would be time later for a crossover between Batman and Spider-man (review coming soon!)).

It was decided to choose Gerry Conway, a logical choice since he had been working with both companies and he has been quite relevant in the comic book industry, creating characters like The Punisher (precisely along with Ross Andru) and Ben Reilly for Marvel, and Firestorm, Jason Todd, KIller Croc and Power Girl for DC, for not saying that he was who decided to kill Gwen Stacy.

Ross Andru did the artwork, he did work for both companies too, but years later was revealed that Neal Adams and John Romita Jr, redraw stuff from the comic book, that honestly I think that if they didn’t trust in Andru, then they should point Adams or Romita Sr. I think that it’s unrespecful to redraw the artwork of another artist not matter if they were way more famous than the original chosen illustrator.

Then, the dream comic book that until that moment was considered something impossible was indeed published, a story featuring the Man of Steel and your Friendly Neighborhood, along with their respective girlfriends, Lois Lane and Mary Jane Watson, even their bosses, Morgan Edge (at that moment, Clark Kent wasn’t working in the Daily Planey but he was a TV News Anchorman for WGBS Network) and J. Johan Jameson, the two heroes fighting against their iconic foes, Lex Luthor and Doctor Octopus.

Since it was the very first superhero crossover between DC and Marvel, they didn’t complicated much explaining why the Last Son of Krypton and your favorite Webcrawler were existing in the same Earth (it was later that they realized that it was better to conceive the concept of parallel dimensions), therefore the story has been considered non-canon, BUT it has been referenced in some other comics of Marvel like What If? #1 and others.


THE BATTLE OF THE CENTURY… IS ON!

Lex Luthor and Doc Ock meet in prison after being arrested by their respective enemies, and there they realized that it would quite productive to work together to eliminate Superman and Spider-man along with taking control of the world, therefore they are able to escape without much trouble.
Clark Kent and Lois Lane travel to New York to attend to the presentation of a revolutionary satellite able to control weather (mmh, this is suspiciously quite similar to the satellite used in the later Superman III, mmh) and of course, Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson are in the presentation too. Lex Luthor disguised as Superman kidnaps Lois and MJ using a teleportation device, and then...

...there is the mandatory brawl between the heroes in almost any crossover (even crossover of characters of a same comic book company), but soon enough they realized that both are good guys and that they need to work together to find their respective girlfriends, for not saying to arrest (again) their respective villains.

Something cool that happens is that Doc Ock (and I stand up to clap for good ol’ Octavius) indeed will question the methods of Lex Luthor since the hacked satellite would be destroying the world, since many cliché are always trying to destroy the world…

…what the heck are they gonna take control is they destroyed the world?

I think that’s quite enough, since I don’t want to spoil the fun of reading the rest of the story, that maybe it’s not that inspired for the nowadays narratives, but I can assure that it’s still a great comic book to read since you can’t have a lot of times two of the most popular superheroes from different publishing house fighting side by side in the same comic book.

´Nuff Said!

[Zach · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was actually such a fun and special read for me.
Growing up, I was a huge Spider-Man fan. I grew up watching Spidey cartoons, reading kid comics, playing games, dressing up, etc etc. Something that a lot of kids would did, but Peter Parker felt special to me back in the day.
Around the time I turned 15, I started really getting into Superman. I read the book Super Boys by Brad Ricca, which changed my allegiance to favorite superheroes pretty quickly. But I insisted that Spider-Man was still my fav on the Marvel side of things.
As years progressed, I became more of an FF fan, as well as Captain America and the Hulk. Spider-Man doesn't even rank in my Top 10 due to poor editorial, at least 2 decades of terrible comics (with few exceptions), and overall just a lack of respect for the character from Marvel Comics.
Meanwhile Superman has been having the time of his life. He had some really good runs in the 00s and late 2010s with things like Johns run, New Krypton, and the Rebirth run setting things back after the terrible New 52. Sure, he had a bad run during Bendis' tenure, but those comics lasted less than 2 years thank god, and Superman was right back to being the best of the best to offer from DC Comics.
But this was so refreshing. Its two of pop cultures most important heroes together for the first time ever, and at the height of some of their best eras. The 70s were kind to both Clark Kent and Peter Parker. They had tons of great stories, great artists and writers, and overall a lot of love put into the work. It made sense that these two would finally come together and I enjoyed it thoroughly.
I really liked the fact that they had an artist familiar with drawing both characters. Andru Ross had experience drawing both the wall crawler and the man of steel, which made for a really nice and consistent combo of characters to look at. I loved the look of this book and how dynamic the art is. Ross was great during the Conway years of Spider-Man and the era of Action Comics he worked on. This is the pinnacle of that work.
I also really love the detail that Clark has read Daily Bugle articles and believes that Spidey is a menace. Its just such a really fun idea and I thought it was cool. As far as plot goes, its not really insanely well developed, but its still really fun to read. I like the era of mad scientist Lex Luthor doing genuinely unhinged shit in this book and Spider-Man and Superman having to fight against him... and Doc Ock, who ultimately is here. He doesn't do much in this book, but its still really great and I love it.

[Philmore Olazo · Rating 3 out of 5]

This comic is historic for being the very first official crossover between DC and Marvel characters. Sadly, it’s more a product of its time than a timeless story.

Clark Kent, a TV reporter at this point, and Peter Parker are both in New York covering a major science exhibit. Meanwhile, their arch-nemeses; Lex Luthor and Doctor Octopus (Yes, Green Goblin is not Spidey’s arch enemy. Deal with it); have already been arrested by their respective heroes. But of course, this doesn’t last. From their prison cells, they strike up an alliance.

We get the standard crossover formula: a hero-vs-hero misunderstanding fight. Now, it’s obvious Superman would flatten Spider-Man in seconds. So how is this fair?, Luthor bathes Spidey in red sun radiation, making him able to land blows on the man of steel.

It’s fun for the spectacle, Spider-Man going toe-to-toe with Superman, but even Spidey realizes quickly he’s way out of his league. Once the misunderstanding is cleared up, they join forces to chase down the real threat.

At this point, the story of stalls. Supes and Spidey use their journalism skills to investigate where Luthor and Doc Ock are hiding. But, in all honesty, Superman carries most of the plot from this point forward. Peter Parker fades into the background, occasionally cracking jokes but mostly just tagging along while Superman does all the actual work.

Things escalate when Luthor and Doc Ock kidnap Lois Lane and Mary Jane Watson, dragging the heroes on a global chase that includes a bizarre and slightly off moment in Mount Kilimanjaro, where Superman weirdly assumes the locals can’t understand him, despite canonically speaking most Earth languages.

On a funny note, this is pre-businessman Lex, back when he was still a mad scientist who wanted to destroy the Earth, so you might be a bit confused if you expect a more elegant Lex.

This comic is more interesting as a historical artifact than a great story. A novelty of seeing Spider-Man and Superman together. But as a narrative, it’s unbalanced, outdated, and sometimes just plain goofy.

[Shevek · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although this comic was conceived with a clear marketing purpose, I must say that I have enjoyed reading it. Gerry Conway is one of my ¿3? favourite Spiderman's writers ever, and he has also authored good stories for Superman. So it is not surprising that he develops an effective and coherent plot in which both characters are well characterized and put together. Their interactions feel natural and there is a number of moments that are really touching for a fan like me. On the contrary, the villains and secondary characters are not so well approached. Luthor is a caricature with no motivations apart from evil for evil, whereas Lois and Mary Jane are just a MacGuffin. Ross Andru's art is decent, although it often looks pretty stiff.

[Jamie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really cool book! It was so great seeing Superman and Spidey in the same comic/story.
The first chapter focuses solely on Superman and Lex Luthor. The second focuses on Spider-Man and Doctor Octopus. The book then really gets going when Luthor and Octavius join forces, which leads to a battle between the Man of Steel and the Web spinner.
Finally, the two heroes team up to stop the villains. It’s a very simple but effective story that works for this crossover special.
It was also great seeing other key characters from both universes together such as: Lois Lane, J Jonah Jameson, Mary Jane Watson and Jimmy Olsen.
The classic artwork and overall nostalgic feeling of the book made it a fun read!
Would definitely recommend.

[Arkham · Rating 4 out of 5]

An incredibly charming little time capsule. I appreciate that this comic doesn’t operate under the pretense that Spidey can pose a threat to Supes. And this is coming from someone whose favorite superhero is Spider-Man. Anyone who says Spider-Man can hurt Superman is being disingenuous. Anyway, it takes a bit too long for the actual crossover to start, but the fight and eventual team up for the heroes is very charming. It’s also important to remember that this was the first marvel and dc crossover ever. So while it is kind of cliche, that’s not remotely this one’s fault

[Francesco · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un ottimo crossover targato Marvel/DC. In rappresentanza, abbiamo due supereroi d'eccezione (non a caso tra i miei preferiti): Superman e Spider-Man, uniti per sconfiggere i loro acerrimi rivali in uno scontro epico. Adoro i disegni vintage, perciò chi li adora come me, non può far altro che godersi la storia pagina dopo pagina.

[scribble · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rao, this is definitely one of my favorite and most iconic issues ever. The genius lovechild of Marvel and DC. From the story, to the drawing, the ink, the lettering, colors -you get it- it was marvelous (pun very much intended). The two-page illustrations? Groundbreaking.

[Andrew Robertson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun story. The battle between Superman and Spider-Man was done well, especially considering the mis-match between their power sets. Unfortunately the hero pair (and the opposing villain duo) didn't coordinate as well together as they should have.

[Rasmus Jonsson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found a used copy of this as a kid at my local comic book store and I still own it. This was one of my favorite comics, I found the crossover adventure so exciting. Love the art work as well.

[Daniel Frazier · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun read, if for no other reason, for its glimpse at 1970s Superman and Spider-Man. The art is good and the story decent for a one-off. It’s definitely better than Batman v Superman.

[Timo · Rating 2 out of 5]

Jopa pentuna tämä tuntui vähän typerältä tarinalta. Tänä päivänä tämä tuntuu typerältä ja ajan hampaan syömältä.

[Dylan McPeake · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing crossover

[Ham Sandwich · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simple but stupidly fun!