It’s Superman and Captain Marvel in a letters page brawl to end it all!
Not since Tastes Great/Less Filling has a debate so captured the hearts and minds of America and convulsed her populace in vigorous advocacy.
This old feature is really a no contest for me. Captain Marvel has his moments, mainly when he’s decking Hitler or teaching an elderly miser the true meaning of Christmas, but Superman is at the top of the mountain. Top of the world, Ma! I know Captain Marvel was a huge seller in his Golden Age day. I know every now and then DC tries to ram his acquired Fawcett mug down the throats of the comic world. I know Alex Ross gets a boner whenever he hears the word “Shazam.” And I know Superman has had his many low ebbs, like when he got beat up and stripped naked by a werewolf. But this isn’t a fair fight. It’s Superman. All the way, baby.
Despite its foregone conclusion, I’ll say this for the Superman/Captain Marvel debate: It’s a hell of a lot less irritating than the emo Twilight Team Edward/Team Jacob crap. Less open-mouthed brooding.
Jared
Hi Jared,
I’m writing a Superman vs. Captain Marvel feature for The Comics Cube as well, and as you may guess, I pretty much fall squarely on the other side. But may I ask where this is from? I’d like to use it if you don’t mind.
Duy
Sure — it’s from Superman #278, which I did just the other day. Shazam-lover…
Funny. I remember one of those battle pages where someone wrote a long letter comparing and contrasting Superman and Captain Marvel, then ended with, “You’re waiting for my answer? I’ve always sort of liked Wonder Woman/”
Now that’s missing the mark.
Naturally my allegiance is with Supes, but what a lame pose for him. With his fists up like that, he looks like he’s saying, “I have to warn you, I took top boxing honors back in prep school.”
Of course, Cap’s even less threatening, with that “keep your frisbees off my lawn” pose.
I thought the same thing about the postures. Apparently Superman boxes under the Marquess of Queensberry rules.