Marvel-DC Dustup (Part 1)

Hey, fellow authors, remember the days when we used to do group participation posts? Where one of us would post a topic, and the others would respond? I miss that. So I've decided to bring it back. Consider this an engraved invitation to share your wisdom and insights, Lord Mhoram and Dilliwag (and anyone else who wants to play along, I suppose).

Today's topic: Marvel Heroes vs. DC Heroes.

I'm sure everyone's familiar with this picture:



This spread features no less than two dozen pairings of some members of the two companies' flagship teams. The matchups, as best I can tell, are as follows:

Wasp vs. Atom
Captain America vs. Batman
Hawkeye vs. Green Arrow
Scarlet Witch vs. Zatanna
Quicksilver vs. Flash
Crystal vs. Ice
Machine Man vs. Plastic Man
Warbird vs. Power Girl
Thor vs. Superman
Giant-Man vs. Orion
Wonder Man vs. Captain Marvel
Iron Man vs. Green Lantern (Kyle Rayner)
Triathlete vs. Steel
Sub-Mariner vs. Aquaman
Black Widow vs. Black Canary
Black Panther vs. Blue Beetle
Tigra vs. Huntress
Quasar vs. Firestorm
Vision vs. Martian Manhunter
She-Hulk vs. Wonder Woman
Firestar vs. Fire
Hercules vs. Big Barda
Justice vs. Red Tornado
Falcon vs. Hawkman

(Roughly bottom to top. By the way, who's that fighting Red Tornado? Is it Jack of Hearts? Or maybe someone else? I can't tell. Little help here?)

Anyway, pictures like this always make me wonder: Who would win?

My invitation is to pick the winner of each fight. (We'll just do the Big Three from each company, to start with.) Give details. Debate. Speculate. You remember the drill.

I'll begin.

Captain America vs. Batman
The toughest fight to pick, right out of the gate. In the comics, these two fought each other to a standstill over an extended period of time--hours, as I recall. It's hard to single out an advantage in skill, willpower, strategy, endurance, or weaponry for either one. In the end, I have to go with my gut feeling: As a wartime combat veteran, Cap wins. Barely.
(Too bad both of these characters are currently dead.)
Winner: Captain America


Thor vs. Superman
God of Thunder. Man of Steel. The two heaviest hitters (with the possible exception of Hulk) in the two universes. Superman has his Kryptonian heritage and decades of skill as a hero. Thor has his Asgardian physiology, his mighty hammer Mjolnir, and mystical control over lightning and thunder. Is it enough to beat Superman? Sadly, Thor, I say thee nay.
Winner: Superman


Iron Man vs. Green Lantern (Kyle Rayner)
Conventional wisdom says that Green Lantern wins this fight, pretty much regardless of who the opponent is. And were the two people involved anyone other than Kyle and Tony, I'd agree without hesitation. Kyle is skilled with the ring and possesses an almost limitless imagination. But Tony is a scientific genius, an experienced hero and warrior, a survivor, and as recent events have shown, a ruthless S.O.B. when he feels the need to be. In a straight-up fight, Kyle wins. Tony makes sure this isn't a straight-up fight. This is my dark horse pick of the first round.
Winner: Iron Man


She-Hulk vs. Wonder Woman
She-Hulk is strong, smart, and strangely able to make green and purple look good together. She's a tough fight for almost anyone. But Wonder Woman is an icon. That, and she flies. All other things being equal--and I don't believe all other things are equal, in this case--that gives Diana the win.
(Incidentally, I think Wonder Woman vs. Ms. Marvel would be a much more interesting fight.)
Winner: Wonder Woman

I look forward to seeing your picks--and your reactions to mine.