# SDMB's The Deadliest Warrior: Wonder Woman vs Superman **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 20, 2010, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sdmbs-the-deadliest-warrior-wonder-woman-vs-superman/547308 "2010-07-20T02:14:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sdmbs-the-deadliest-warrior-wonder-woman-vs-superman/547308/21 "2010-07-21T01:05:35Z")
Again, when there is canonical claim that there is a significant difference in Superman and Wonder Woman’s speed - _she’s_ the one who’s claimed to be faster. Superman is fast, indeed. But he’s not the gold standard of superspeed. ---
**Author:** ![Superhal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Superhal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superhal)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sdmbs-the-deadliest-warrior-wonder-woman-vs-superman/547308/22 "2010-07-21T01:07:52Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > It _should_ be Superman, easily, which is how I voted. In fact, given his combination of strength, speed, flight and invulnerability, he _should_ be unbeatable in a brawl, with only a handful of like-powered characters like Captain Marvel or Black Adam able to fight him to a draw. Ah, but Wonder Woman has the advantage of magic on her side that is one of Superman’s canonical weaknesses. ---
**Author:** ![pancakes3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ba9def/32.png) [@pancakes3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pancakes3)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sdmbs-the-deadliest-warrior-wonder-woman-vs-superman/547308/23 "2010-07-21T01:53:54Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > Heck, even if WW is fast enough to defend herself against Superman, she still moves with sluggish speed when battling villains, as does he. bothers the heck out of me. a man who can fly so fast he travels BACK IN TIME is only compared with the speed of a mere bullet. ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sdmbs-the-deadliest-warrior-wonder-woman-vs-superman/547308/24 "2010-07-21T03:31:32Z")
> [@Superhal](#): > > Ah, but Wonder Woman has the advantage of magic on her side that is one of Superman’s canonical weaknesses. Exactly. She just has to keep pounding him with [these](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wonder_Woman%27s_bracelets) until Superman is just so much super-tough hamburger. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sdmbs-the-deadliest-warrior-wonder-woman-vs-superman/547308/25 "2010-07-21T19:58:29Z")
> [@](#): > > There are three invulnerable vaginae in the DC universe that could handle Superman, and luckily Wonder Woman has one of them. And isn’t she the only one not related to him, too? ---
**Author:** ![TWDuke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e495f1/32.png) [@TWDuke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TWDuke)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sdmbs-the-deadliest-warrior-wonder-woman-vs-superman/547308/26 "2010-07-21T20:07:13Z")
> [@pancakes3](#): > > bothers the heck out of me. a man who can fly so fast he travels BACK IN TIME is only compared with the speed of a mere bullet. “Faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, and able to leap tall buildings in a single bound” is a ~70-year-old phrase that more or less accurately described Superman’s power level when it was coined. If it’s used at all know, it’s out of a sense of tradition. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sdmbs-the-deadliest-warrior-wonder-woman-vs-superman/547308/27 "2010-07-21T21:25:25Z")
> [@TWDuke](#): > > “Faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, and able to leap tall buildings in a single bound” is a ~70-year-old phrase that more or less accurately described Superman’s power level when it was coined. Actually, when he started flying (almost immediately, since jumping around like a giant grasshopper is kinda gay), the Fleischer/Famous cartoons (1941-43, available on YouTube and highly recommended) introduced variations on the phrase, including replacing “tall building” with “able to soar higher than any plane”. Some of the later toons started with “Faster than a streak of light! More powerful than the pounding surf! Mightier than a whirling hurricane!” ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sdmbs-the-deadliest-warrior-wonder-woman-vs-superman/547308/28 "2010-07-21T22:46:30Z")
Superman could beat her, Batman could beat her…hell, the only JLA Member who _could not_ beat her is Green Arrow. And they give plastic versions of his signature weapon away with Happy Meals, so he’s a wuss. ---
**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:** [July 22, 2010, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sdmbs-the-deadliest-warrior-wonder-woman-vs-superman/547308/29 "2010-07-22T20:22:53Z")
My take… Strength: Edge to Superman Invulnerability: Edge to Superman Raw Speed: Significant edge to Superman Ability to operate at top speed: Significant edge to Wonder Woman Martial Prowess: Significant edge to Wonder Woman Ranged Attacks: Edge to Superman Scope of Powers: Edge to Superman Ruthlessness: Significant edge to Wonder Woman X-Factor: Edge to Wonder Woman (magic items) Running multiple simulations through the battle computer, I have WW beating Superman by a 58-to-42 margin. Kal-El has the advantage when he uses a broader range of his powers and can keep much of the battle out of hand-to-hand, but as noted, he falls prey too easily to HtH combat, where Diana’s prowess and willingness to ‘go the extra mile’ win out. ---
**Author:** ![Superhal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Superhal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superhal)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2010, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sdmbs-the-deadliest-warrior-wonder-woman-vs-superman/547308/30 "2010-07-25T02:39:17Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > > [@](#): > > > > There are three invulnerable vaginae in the DC universe that could handle Superman, and luckily Wonder Woman has one of them. > > And isn’t she the only one not related to him, too? Nah, Power Girl is from Earth 2 so it’s all good. He could even nail Supergirl if he wanted to in some countries. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Man\_In\_Black](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bcef8e/32.png) [@The\_Man\_In\_Black](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Man_In_Black)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2010, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sdmbs-the-deadliest-warrior-wonder-woman-vs-superman/547308/31 "2010-07-25T03:25:05Z")
If the info here: [Wonder Woman - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wonder_Woman) is correct, I do not even see how there is a question. Superman would win with little effort, if he really was out to win the fight that is. Her skin is hard, but can be cut by sharp objects. So she is nowhere near the level of Superman. ---
**Author:** ![Superhal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Superhal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superhal)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2010, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sdmbs-the-deadliest-warrior-wonder-woman-vs-superman/547308/32 "2010-07-25T03:43:58Z")
> [@The\_Man\_In\_Black](#): > > If the info here: [Wonder Woman - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wonder_Woman) is correct, I do not even see how there is a question. Superman would win with little effort, if he really was out to win the fight that is. Her skin is hard, but can be cut by sharp objects. So she is nowhere near the level of Superman. Same article, but check “post crisis powers.” ---
**Author:** ![casdave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c6cbf5/32.png) [@casdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/casdave)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2010, 8:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sdmbs-the-deadliest-warrior-wonder-woman-vs-superman/547308/33 "2010-07-25T08:58:44Z")
One of the reasons that the writers make Superman out to be dumb is just to get a story. If they wrote him as truly invulnerable, then every episode would be much more boring, so they have him being a bit dumb, or they inflate his weaknessess. Superman isn’t mentally dumb, and oftentimes he will win out becuase he uses a strategy that only comes to fruition in the last three or four frames, when he suddenly reveals to he reader something that he figured out in the first four frames. He has a lot of technical knowledge, he was very well educated from materials that were bequeathed to him. I have noted a few times that he is very deceptive, you don’t always know what angle he is working on, which is why there is so much material for the ‘Superman is a dick’ website - in essence that website is dedicated to his ability to appear as one thing, whilst doing quite something else - in other words, Superman takes a longer term view, he is crafty, and he is clever and willing to take some knocks to achieve his objective. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Man\_In\_Black](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bcef8e/32.png) [@The\_Man\_In\_Black](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Man_In_Black)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2010, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sdmbs-the-deadliest-warrior-wonder-woman-vs-superman/547308/34 "2010-07-25T16:35:57Z")
> [@Superhal](#): > > > [@The\_Man\_In\_Black](#): > > > > If the info here: [Wonder Woman - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wonder_Woman) is correct, I do not even see how there is a question. Superman would win with little effort, if he really was out to win the fight that is. Her skin is hard, but can be cut by sharp objects. So she is nowhere near the level of Superman. > > Same article, but check “post crisis powers.” I did, did you? “While not invulnerable, she is capable of withstanding great concussive force,[25] shrugging off high-powered rifle fire with some pain but little injury,[29] being knocked through a building, and even surviving a warp-core explosion.[30] She is durable enough to survive the rigors of space until she runs out of breath. While her superhuman strength affords her great resistance to blunt-force trauma, her skin can be cut by weapons if they are sharp enough.” That is her post crisis powers. Superman would tear her apart. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sdmbs-the-deadliest-warrior-wonder-woman-vs-superman/547308.md?page=1)