# Could Dracula defeat Superman? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 25, 2010, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-dracula-defeat-superman/530406 "2010-02-25T16:45:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2010, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-dracula-defeat-superman/530406/61 "2010-02-26T18:22:42Z")
> [@Mollie\_Magill](#): > > The only reason he was detected at Carfax, was because he bought the house next door to the asylum, Man, those [Carfax.com](http://Carfax.com) folks pick up everything! ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2010, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-dracula-defeat-superman/530406/62 "2010-02-26T18:33:06Z")
> [@FriarTed](#): > > Three (the vampire brides in the castle) > plus who knows how many Transylvanian peasants > plus the crew of the Demeter > plus two (Lucy & Renfield) > plus who knows how many “snacks” in England & on the way back to his castle. > > So five confirmed plus a lot more innumerable. Fine. But they’re all red shirts. Which brings up another question - Would being near another star make Dracula go up in flames? Or is only our sun? Because when Kirk or Spock take on Dracula\*, that could matter. \*Dracula loses to either, of course. Dracula loses to everybody except red shirts and mooks. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2010, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-dracula-defeat-superman/530406/63 "2010-02-26T18:54:11Z")
> [@D\_Odds](#): > > The newest incarnation of Fate is a rank rookie with lots of power and little skill. No one wants the Spectre, neither on their side nor against them. Batman isn’t as difficult as he once was, as the man under the cowl is Dick Grayson. Dang. None of the heroes are who I remember them being any more. Batman isn’t Bruce Wayne. Doctor Fate isn’t Kent Nelson. The Spectre isn’t Jim Corrigan. Suddenly, I feel old. ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2010, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-dracula-defeat-superman/530406/64 "2010-02-26T20:37:15Z")
I dunno. I think a lot of you are focusing too much on the physical, trivial aspects of the contest, envisioning Dracula as the semi-comical “I vant to suck your bloooooooood! Blah! Blah!” chump. He’s not. He’s the Lord of the Undead. He’s a subtle, vastly intelligent, amoral, ruthless, evasive target. He controls the creatures of the night. He has insubstantial forms as well as super speed. He’s next to impossible to kill. He’s a demon sent to haunt the earth from the bowels of Hell. And most of all, he’s a puppet master. He dominates and controls from within, using his target’s fears and weakness. He’s also a master strategist and a soulless killing machine (see, Vlad’s defense of Wallachia against the Turks. They didn’t call him the Little Dragon for nuthin’, folks.) Dracula would work out a subtle, cunning way to turn Superman, and end up with a Zombie Lapdog of Steel, with his cold, undead hand wrapped irrevocably around Supes’s heart, without ever actually directly confronting him. ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2010, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-dracula-defeat-superman/530406/65 "2010-02-27T00:42:17Z")
> [@Ogre](#): > > I dunno. I think a lot of you are focusing too much on the physical, trivial aspects of the contest, envisioning Dracula as the semi-comical “I vant to suck your bloooooooood! Blah! Blah!” chump. > > He’s not. He’s the Lord of the Undead. He’s a subtle, vastly intelligent, amoral, ruthless, evasive target. He controls the creatures of the night. He has insubstantial forms as well as super speed. He’s next to impossible to kill. He’s a demon sent to haunt the earth from the bowels of Hell. And most of all, he’s a puppet master. He dominates and controls from within, using his target’s fears and weakness. He’s also a master strategist and a soulless killing machine (see, Vlad’s defense of Wallachia against the Turks. They didn’t call him the Little Dragon for nuthin’, folks.) > > Dracula would work out a subtle, cunning way to turn Superman, and end up with a Zombie Lapdog of Steel, with his cold, undead hand wrapped irrevocably around Supes’s heart, without ever actually directly confronting him. And his first mission for his Superman? Kill Batman, of course. ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2010, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-dracula-defeat-superman/530406/66 "2010-02-27T01:52:32Z")
As has been mentioned before, Superman has fought vampires before, both pre- and post-Crisis. Many of the points brought up in said comics (like Superman’s magic vulnerability) have been brought up in said stories. Of course, he’s never (IIRC) fought the _literary_ Dracula, which seems to be the point of the OP. Whether there are significant differences in power or mind between him and the vampires Supes has already fought is another point for debate. ---
**Author:** ![TBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@TBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TBG)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2010, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-dracula-defeat-superman/530406/67 "2010-02-28T00:53:21Z")
> [@holmes](#): > > Yes but isn’t Superman’s cells charged with solar energy? So let’s say Vlad gets the bite, he ends up with a mouth full of liquid sun and ‘poof’. That’s exactly what happened in one issue of the Post-Crisis, Pre-“Whatever the current era is called” series. Drac was able to bite Supes thanks to that whole “Kryptonians are weak against supernatural” rule, but then Drac exploded from Supes’ solar charged blood. google turns up [Superman vol. 2 #180](http://www.comics.org/issue/90286/) as the issue I’m thinking of. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2010, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-dracula-defeat-superman/530406/68 "2010-02-28T05:40:26Z")
> [@bup](#): > > …Which brings up another question - Would being near another star make Dracula go up in flames? Or is only our sun?.. A previous discussion: [Space vampires: How far from the sun before a vamp could walk in daylight, safely? - Cafe Society - Straight Dope Message Board](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=435300) ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2010, 5:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-dracula-defeat-superman/530406/69 "2010-02-28T05:52:34Z")
Testing that question, no, because Dracula was merely undead because of how his body reacted with those undead who were not going along with him. he lost the vote. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2010, 5:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-dracula-defeat-superman/530406/70 "2010-02-28T05:55:10Z")
I look forward to working in a mental landscaoe in which my systems are not asked to replicate such BS for money. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2010, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-dracula-defeat-superman/530406/71 "2010-02-28T12:15:10Z")
> [@dropzone](#): > > I look forward to working in a mental landscaoe in which my systems are not asked to replicate such BS for money. Yet again, you enter a Cafe Society thread merely to indicate your contempt for the subject of a discussion and for everyone participating in it. Your posting privileges are under discussion. twickster, Cafe Society moderator ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 11:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-dracula-defeat-superman/530406/72 "2010-03-02T11:51:44Z")
> [@TBG](#): > > That’s exactly what happened in one issue of the Post-Crisis, Pre-“Whatever the current era is called” series. > > Drac was able to bite Supes thanks to that whole “Kryptonians are weak against supernatural” rule, but then Drac exploded from Supes’ solar charged blood. > > google turns up [Superman vol. 2 #180](http://www.comics.org/issue/90286/) as the issue I’m thinking of. I think a link to an actual [plot synopsis/review](http://www.supermanhomepage.com/comics/2002-post-crisis-reviews/c-review-2002.php?topic=17-sup180) might be a little more helpful. But note that that doesn’t actually answer the question of whether Dracula\* could \*beat Superman, merely that he tried once and failed. If I know anything about Dracula, especially in a comic book universe, even seeing him completely obliterated does not mean he can’t come back. ---
**Author:** ![palindromemordnilap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/db5fbb/32.png) [@palindromemordnilap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/palindromemordnilap)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-dracula-defeat-superman/530406/73 "2010-03-02T14:23:33Z")
Superman grows old and dies. Dracula continues to exist. Superman doesn’t know how to live well. He continues to eke out a marginal living a crappy job in a dying industry for a mean boss, lusting for his co-worker who thinks of him as just a friend because he fails to reveal his actual strengths. He doesn’t need Dracula to beat him. He has sentenced himself to a life of isolation and drudgery. Dracula seems to live pretty well, enjoys the pleasures that his existence offers, and does not seem perturbed by any moral dilemnas. He lived a good life and then cheated death for hundreds of years before Superman came along. He’s a winner before they ever meet. I don’t doubt that Superman would come out victorious in a physical combat situation. But is winning and losing really about who can punch or bite the best? If winning is about happiness or self-esteem, there’s no contest. ---
**Author:** ![Gagundathar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a183cd/32.png) [@Gagundathar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gagundathar)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-dracula-defeat-superman/530406/74 "2010-03-02T14:25:33Z")
> [@palindromemordnilap](#): > > Superman grows old and dies. Dracula continues to exist. > > Superman doesn’t know how to live well. He continues to eke out a marginal living a crappy job in a dying industry for a mean boss, lusting for his co-worker who thinks of him as just a friend because he fails to reveal his actual strengths. He doesn’t need Dracula to beat him. He has sentenced himself to a life of isolation and drudgery. > > Dracula seems to live pretty well, enjoys the pleasures that his existence offers, and does not seem perturbed by any moral dilemnas. He lived a good life and then cheated death for hundreds of years before Superman came along. He’s a winner before they ever meet. > > I don’t doubt that Superman would come out victorious in a physical combat situation. But is winning and losing really about who can punch or bite the best? If winning is about happiness or self-esteem, there’s no contest. I must say that this is the most depressing take on poor Kal-El’s existence that I have ever read. Nice insight. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-dracula-defeat-superman/530406/75 "2010-03-02T14:36:37Z")
> [@palindromemordnilap](#): > > Superman doesn’t know how to live well. He continues to eke out a marginal living a crappy job in a dying industry for a mean boss, lusting for his co-worker who thinks of him as just a friend because he fails to reveal his actual strengths. He doesn’t need Dracula to beat him. He has sentenced himself to a life of isolation and drudgery. I see you haven’t peeked in on the life of Superman in the last 30 years or so… ---
**Author:** ![D\_Odds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/d_odds/32/2882_2.png) [@D\_Odds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Odds)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-dracula-defeat-superman/530406/76 "2010-03-02T15:21:56Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > I see you haven’t peeked in on the life of Superman in the last 30 years or so… I know he married Lois, who knows his identity. But, even though I am a comic fan, I don’t follow Superman (or Batman, or Spider-man, or the mutants, or anything other unlimited series with too many intertwining stories to keep track of). What else has changed? ---
**Author:** ![SandyHook](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dec6dc/32.png) [@SandyHook](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SandyHook)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-dracula-defeat-superman/530406/77 "2010-03-02T17:22:02Z")
> [@storyteller0910](#): > > He also has the ability to change at will into a bat, wolf, or insubstantial mist. Have you ever tried to find a single, individual bat, that could be anywhere on earth? I’m thinking this bat thing needs some more looking at. Many bats, in the US at least, are protected. If Drac changed into one of a protected species then, given Superman’s reluctance to break laws, he’d have a perfect defense until he found a way to gather up some kryptonite. ---
**Author:** ![ajdebosco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecd19e/32.png) [@ajdebosco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ajdebosco)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-dracula-defeat-superman/530406/78 "2010-03-02T19:43:45Z")
As far as Dracula goes, his reassembled self now knows better than to bite Supes, lest he explode, again. He must also know by now he could render the man of steel powerless by gathering a bit of green kryptonite. He is certainly as resourceful, and easily more clever than Lex Luthor, so I envision the Count luring Superman to a would-be rescue, producing a quantity of the Kryptonite, and imprisoning him. Disposing of Kal-el might be a bit more problematic, but they didn’t call him Vlad the Impaler for nothing. I can almost see that big S and cape twisting in the wind atop a sharp pike of green…🆒 ---
**Author:** ![xcalibre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/5daacb/32.png) [@xcalibre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xcalibre)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2010, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-dracula-defeat-superman/530406/79 "2010-03-03T21:24:31Z")
Based on the most recent videographic data we have available: Dracula \< Helsing = Hugh Jackman = Wolverine \< Superman I think this problem has been solved. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2010, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-dracula-defeat-superman/530406/80 "2010-03-03T22:51:14Z")
Supes fought vamps in Action Comics Annual #1 (1980’s, post-CoIE). I think the invulnerability helps Supes, the mesmerism helps Vlad. Of course, there are many writers of both characters, so mileage will vary. I don’t think Vlad has a magic to puncture Supey’s skin, but with mind control he could manipulate Supes for a while (possibly especially post-CoIE Supes); but Supey might break the conditioning & only pretend to play along, or even use super-clever-resistance-to-hypnosis from the first moment (especially pre-CoIE Supes). But as for the effect of Kryptonian blood on a vampire, I wonder if it wouldn’t do to Drac what Majesdanian blood does to them in\*\* Runaways.\*\* 😃 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-dracula-defeat-superman/530406.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-dracula-defeat-superman/530406.md?page=5)