Source: The Odyssey Online
Every fan of comic books must answer this question at some point in their lives. One that gets to the heart of the matter and may elicit passionate responses and defenses of the choice of response. Since the beginning of the comic book community, there has been a question that has caused division: Marvel or DC? While each publication has its strengths and weaknesses, most people seem to completely overlook the fact that they are more identical than they are different. The two publishers have more things in common than most people realize, even when it comes to the superpowers of their respective superheroes.
If you look more closely, you might discover, though, that those characters are not quite as similar as you first thought. Although the differences could be small, significant, or even nonexistent, they are typically present to balance and enhance the similarities.
Let's take a look at some of the Marvel and DC Superheroes with the same powers.
1. Aquaman/ Namor
Despite having many superficial similarities, these two have very different worldviews. When it comes to defending both the surface world and his native country of Atlantis, Aquaman has never been anything less than a hero. Namor On the other side, The Sub-Mariner has occasionally toyed with the idea of being an anti-hero, if not a full-fledged villain.
As the son of Atlantean nobility and a surface-dwelling human, Namor is likewise an Atlantean native. They both have superhuman strength, water speed, and other aquatic-based abilities, but Namor also possesses the ability to fly.
2. Cyborg/ Ironman
Despite having nearly identical abilities, Victor Stone and Tony Stark are about as different as it is possible to be (flight, suits of armor, and the ability to hack just about anything). While Iron Man is free to go around without the restrictions of his fierce armor, Victor is dependent on his suit to keep him alive.
Tony comes from a wealthy and privileged upbringing and has built even more on it, while Victor comes from a far poorer one. Moreover, Victor, in contrast to Tony, who decided to become Iron Man to make up for past wrongdoings, has a much stronger hatred toward his role as a hero and the armor he wears because he was made into Cyborg as a result of a life-saving experiment he didn't consent to. Victor's personality is given more depth by this, setting him apart from Iron Man.
3. Deathstroke/ Deadpool
It should be recalled that Rob Liefeld intentionally paid homage to the iconic DC villain Deathstroke when he first created Deadpool, (yep, everyone's favorite R-Rated Superhero). The two are remarkably similar, sharing mercenary histories, using pistols and swords as their primary weapons, and donning nearly identical costumes except for color.
But Deathstroke is devoid of all of Deadpool's abilities. He lacks Deadpool's ability to teleport and recover from injuries, and he never breaks the fourth wall. Slade Wilson is more of a harsh, efficient, and tacitly malevolent force that is unstoppable. They weren't included on this list because of any shared abilities; instead, they were included because of how similar they looked.
4. Green Arrow/ Hawkeye
Oliver Queen (Green Arrow) and Clint Barton (Hawkeye) are superheroes without superpowers who rely on extraordinary archery abilities and trick arrows in combat. Additionally, they wear distinctive color schemes: purple for Barton and green (obviously) for Queen. They are prominent members of well-known superhero teams.
But Queen is a multimillionaire with a fiery personality who is outgoing, snarky, and opinionated. Initially portrayed as sarcastic and rebellious, Barton later earned the reputation of being Marvel's everyman—someone with modest means who is just trying to get by and whose job is exceptional.
5. Red Tornado/ Vision
A supervillain once built a super-strong android to destroy a well-known super-team. However, the android developed a conscience and rebelled against its creator by siding with the people it was created to destroy. Both Red Tornado from DC and Vision from Marvel is relevant in this story.
Apart from Red Tornado's wind-based power and Vision's distinctive superpower of intangibility, separating them ultimately comes down to a matter of popularity and the finer points. Through his relationship with Scarlet Witch and time spent as an Avenger, Vision developed enduring pathos. Red Tornado, who has a very otherworldly quality to his creation and who similarly developed a sense of humanity via relationships, has typically been cast in supporting roles.
6. Red Hood/ Winter Soldier
Nobody in comics stays dead, according to an old joke, besides Uncle Ben, Jason Todd, and Bucky Barnes. But eventually, ex-superhero sidekicks Bucky and Jason were brought back to life under similar conditions as the enigmatic Winter Soldier and Red Hood characters, respectively, to take on their former mentors, Captain America and Batman, before their true identities were revealed.
Despite this, the two are very different. Bucky was brainwashed into pursuing evil goals, while Jason willingly participated in immoral behavior. After being freed, Bucky had a strong desire to atone for his transgressions.
7. Darkseid/ Thanos
Marvel and DC have each had their signature superhero team, The Avengers for Marvel and The Justice League for DC. Few of the many foes that each team has seen over the years have been as dangerous or famous as Marvel's Thanos and DC's Darkseid, alien warlords driven to find a MacGuffin(s) of unfathomable power that will give them control over an indefinite aspect of existence. Even their similar appearances were deliberate, according to Jim Starlin, the creator behind Thanos.
The two genuinely seem to be meant to be in opposition to one another. Since Thanos is obsessed with death, he wields the Infinity Gauntlet to disperse it throughout the cosmos. Darkseid seeks the fabled Anti-Life Equation in his quest to rule over all life.
Overall, Darkseid is a committed conqueror, while Thanos' motivations are more complex and personal.
8. Catwoman/ Black Cat
The baddest ladies in the whole of Marvel and DC, these femme Fatales have hearts of gold but are both prone to bending the rules of law to their gain. Catwoman has been a long-standing romantic interest for Batman, while Black Cat has had more than a few on-again-off-again entanglements with NYC's favorite wall-crawler, Spider-Man.
They also share an affinity for bullwhips, climbing claws, gymnastics, and burglary. Black Cat, however, has a few gadgets courtesy of Peter Parker's genius intellect, such as contacts that can read electromagnetic energy (similar to a thermal sight) and retractable claws, in addition to a superpower to cause enemies to have incredibly bad luck if she wishes.
Wrapping Up
Comics are full of unique, vibrant characters and villains, especially those produced by the superpower rivals of the industry, Marvel and DC. However, occasionally some of them resemble guys from the other property a little too much, whether in terms of skills, backstories, designs, and so on. Now, none of that is even somewhat accusing. There is only so much creative originality one can muster, thus some imitations that seem like copies may actually be spontaneous or even flattering.
Nonetheless, we love all of them. So, which one of the above is your favorite Superhero?
Anshika Bansal
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