DC vs. Marvel

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DC vs. Marvel
DC Versus Marvel 1.jpg
Cover of DC versus Marvel Comics #1, art by Dan Jurgens
Publication information
Publisher
Format Limited series
Publication dateFebruary – May 1996
No. of issues4
Main character(s)
Creative team
Written by
Penciller(s)
Collected editions
DC versus Marvel Comics ISBN   1-56389-294-4

DC vs. Marvel (issues #2–3 titled Marvel vs. DC) is a comic book miniseries intercompany crossover published by DC Comics and Marvel Comics from February to May 1996. Each company would publish two issues of the miniseries, thus the title difference between issues #1 and 4 as DC vs. Marvel Comics from DC and issues #2–3 from Marvel as Marvel Comics vs. DC. The miniseries was written by Ron Marz and Peter David, with art by Dan Jurgens and Claudio Castellini. [2]

Contents

The special crossover miniseries pitted Marvel Comics superheroes against their DC counterparts in battle. The outcome of each battle was determined by reader ballot, which were distributed in advance to comic book stores. [2]

An omnibus edition of DC vs. Marvel was released in October 2024. [3]

Plot

Two god-like brothers who personify the DC and Marvel Universes each become aware of the other's existence and challenge one another to a series of duels involving each universe's respective superheroes. The losing universe would cease to exist. The story had an "out of universe" component in that the outcomes of the primary battles were determined by the readers' votes. [4]

Numerous smaller story-driven skirmishes occur throughout the miniseries, not counted with the primary duels meant to determine the outcome between the brothers. [5]

There were 11 battles fought between the two universes.

The result of the following six battles were determined by the miniseries' creative team:

The result of the following five battles were determined by the readers' votes:

Although the final victor of the battles is Marvel, the new character of Access, a man capable of traversing between the two universes, infuses Batman and Captain America each with fragments of their respective universes before the Spectre and the Living Tribunal attempt to create a compromise by fusing the two universes together. This resulted in the creation of the Amalgam Universe, which sees various amalgamated versions of the heroes and villains acting as though they have been in existence for years.

Access is eventually able to find the Dark Claw and Super-Soldier – versions of Batman and Captain America who have been amalgamated with Wolverine and Superman, respectively – and use the fragments of the two original universes in them to restore them to normal. As the Brothers engage in direct battle, the Spectre and the Living Tribunal attempt to stop the conflict, but Batman and Captain America convince Access to take them to the conflict as well. Reading the minds of Batman and Captain America as they try to stop the fight, the Brothers realize that the two men are essentially the Brothers in miniature; each one unique among their worlds, but with no interest in the conflict that the Brothers have engaged in. Realizing the pointlessness of the conflict, the Brothers withdraw and congratulate each other.

Trading cards

To promote the event, SkyBox released a series of trading cards. The cards expanded the number of fights in comparison to the miniseries, including battles between villains, and were praised for their artwork, which was thought to be of a high standard. [8]

The DC versus Marvel Comics trading card set contained 100 base cards, with base card #100 being a checklist. [9] The remaining 99 base cards were divided into four types: Hero, Villain, Rival and Battles. There were also four subsets of chase cards: 18 Impact cards, 12 Holo F/X cards, two Mirage cards and four Amalgam Preview cards. [10]

Collected editions

After its completion, the miniseries was collected into a trade paperback titled DC versus Marvel Comics (collects the miniseries and Doctor Strangefate #1; 192 pages; September 1996; ISBN   1-56389-294-4).

The miniseries was collected with the other past DC/Marvel crossovers in an omnibus edition titled DC versus Marvel Omnibus in 2024.

See also

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References

  1. ↑ "Marvel, DC Are About To Rumble!". Chicago Tribune . October 10, 1995. Archived from the original on 11 April 2021.
  2. 1 2 Manning, Matthew K. (2010). "1990s". In Dolan, Hannah (ed.). DC Comics Year By Year A Visual Chronicle. Dorling Kindersley. p. 272. ISBN   978-0-7566-6742-9. Written by Peter David and Ron Marz with art by Dan Jurgens and Claudio Castellini, this four-issue miniseries event consisted of five major battles voted on in advance by reader ballot distributed to comic stores.
  3. ↑ Smith, Sam (2024-02-13). "DC and Marvel Collide in an Epic Team-Up for the First Time in Decades". CBR. Retrieved 2024-02-14.
  4. ↑ "DC Vs Marvel – Universe-Shattering Comic Book Crossovers". UGO.com. 2011-01-19. Archived from the original on 2013-11-02. Retrieved 2013-08-18.
  5. ↑ "Secret Wars on Infinite Earths: DC versus Marvel". 2011-01-19. Archived from the original on 2007-10-15. Retrieved 2006-05-22.
  6. ↑ "DC's Shazam Stood No Chance Against Marvel's Thor". ScreenRant. October 11, 2021.
  7. ↑ "When Spider-Man Fought Superboy, Who Actually Won?". ScreenRant. April 17, 2020.
  8. ↑ Pereira, Sergio (2021-05-12). "DC Versus Marvel Crossover Comics: The Event That No One Talks About". Fortress of Solitude. Retrieved 2023-04-21.
  9. ↑ "1995 Fleer DC vs. Marvel Comics Non-Sport Checklist". www.tcdb.com. Retrieved 2023-04-21.
  10. ↑ "1995 Fleer DC vs. Marvel Comics Non-Sport - Inserts and Related Sets". www.tcdb.com. Retrieved 2023-04-21.
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