| Title | : | Superman vs. The Amazing Spider-Man: The Battle of the Century |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | - |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 92 |
| Publication | : | First published January 1, 1976 |
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.
Superman vs. The Amazing Spider-Man: The Battle of the Century Reviews
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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.
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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. -
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
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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. -
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!! -
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.
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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.
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-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. -
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, -
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
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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. -
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.
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A nice, though outdated crossover between the most notorious superheroes manking has ever known (when excluding Batman :P).
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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.
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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.
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Jopa pentuna tämä tuntui vähän typerältä tarinalta. Tänä päivänä tämä tuntuu typerältä ja ajan hampaan syömältä.
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Meh.
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La colaboración entre Luthor y el Doctor octopus fuerza la alianza entre Superman y Spider-Man, quienes superan sus diferencias iniciales para salvar la Tierra. El encuentro entre las dos mayores franquicias de Marvel y DC se resuelve en una historia instrumental, de lectura liviana y poco sorprendente.
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The biggest team up ever between Marvel and DC. They still haven't been able to top this even with the sequel to this one. Great read for comic book fans.
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It is hard not to like this book. It has
- Two iconic heroes,
- an entertaining story,
- AMAZING artwork,
- the oversize treasury format -
I remember buying this when it came out. I got in trouble because I bought it without permission (I was 12 at the time). Fond memories of reading this.
