Batman has a famous rogues gallery, but how would the hero handle the worst foes of Spider-Man?
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00:00On the surface, Batman and Spider-Man are very different heroes. Batman is a sombre
00:05and determined man who spent years training his body to fight crime. Spider-Man, on the
00:09other hand, is a younger, seemingly happier man who received his powers from a freak spider
00:13bite as a teen. But if you look a little bit deeper, you'll see that they are both brilliant
00:17men with incredible scientific minds that were pushed towards heroism by the tragedy
00:22in their lives.
00:23So the question then pops up, how would Batman fare if he was to go against some of Spider-Man's
00:28greatest villains? Well, that's what we're here to discuss today, as I'm Jules, this
00:31is WhatCulture.com, and this is how Batman would defeat 10 of Spider-Man's most iconic
00:36villains.
00:3710. Scorpion
00:39Private investigator Matt Gargan was paid by J. Jonah Jameson to undergo a procedure
00:44to create a foe for Spider-Man. Dr. Farley Stilwell created an experiment that endowed
00:48Gargan with a variety of powers and a costume with a devastating mechanical tail. The experiment
00:54cost Gargan his sanity, though, and while he happily attacked Spider-Man, he also attacked
00:58Jameson. Gargan came to believe that the experiment had trapped him inside the Scorpion suit,
01:03and more often than not, old Webhead had to save Jameson's life. Scorpion possessed a
01:07level of speed, strength, and agility that would make a physical confrontation extremely
01:12dangerous for Batman. Scorpion's tail can strike at 90 miles an hour, and he possesses
01:16the ability to lift 15 tons. In short, meeting Scorpion in battle from inside one of his
01:21armored Batsuits would be the smartest tactical move for Bats. An even smarter move would
01:26be to reach out to some of his colleagues in the Justice League. Wonder Woman or any
01:29member of the Superman family would have the speed and vulnerability to deal with Scorpion's
01:34hybrid nature and deadly tail. Batman could also secure victory by calling in Vixen or
01:38Animal Man and use a bit of Scorpion against Scorpion to win the day.
01:429. Sandman
01:44William Baker, aka Flint Marko, was a child of poverty who learned to steal at an early
01:49age. After years as a petty criminal, Marko was in the vicinity of a nuclear accident
01:53that affected a body-wide change, which also gave him the ability to transform his body.
01:58Flint has flipped between being a villain, a mercenary hero with Silver Sable's Wild
02:02Pack, and a brief stint as an Avenger in training. Sandman has never been a villain of the world-domination
02:08variety, he just wanted to get rich, and Batman may be able to appeal to Marko's better
02:12nature, or indeed his greed. Either way would prevent the fight that the Caped Crusader
02:16would rather not have against a foe that he would actually have a difficult time defeating.
02:21Using water to dissipate his form, or heat to fuse his form into glass, has been the
02:25way of dealing with Sandman's villainous actions previously. Batman has used extreme
02:29cold similar to what Mr. Freeze generates to deal with Clayface, so it's possible
02:33that this approach could work with Sandman if he's caught with a significant amount
02:36of his form intact. But if Marko is too spread out, the single grain that holds his consciousness
02:41may escape the cold. So Batman's gonna have to go all out on this one.
02:458. The Kingpin
02:46Growing up a poor child, Wilson Fisk went on a mission of self-improvement, and extensive
02:51reading, gaining strength and physical power through bodybuilding definitely achieved that.
02:55He used his business techniques to organize the juvenile gangs, earning himself the mocking
02:59nickname of the Kingpin. Fisk worked as a bodyguard and an enforcer for crime families,
03:04and advanced through the ranks until he controlled large areas of organized crime. Wilson invested
03:09the money from those crimes into legitimate businesses. He organized all of the crime
03:13on the Eastern Seaboard, and finally came to fully own the name of the Kingpin of Crime.
03:18Batman takes a special interest in what you'd call untouchable crime bosses, especially
03:23when those corrupt individuals achieve political office, as Fisk did as mayor of New York City.
03:27Perhaps it's because his family essentially built Gotham and he spent so much time and
03:31effort improving it, but you know what, Bruce takes these actions personally.
03:35Batman might make the mistake of assuming Kingpin is fat instead of being solid muscle,
03:39and as sumo was not one of the disciplines Wayne delved into in his studies, it might
03:43actually give Fisk a brief advantage if he gets Batman into a bear hug. However, Batman's
03:48array of martial arts skills will no doubt send the larger man reeling in no time. Plus,
03:53when in doubt, just trip him up using a wire. That seems to happen quite a lot to him.
03:577. Electro
03:58Electric company lineman Max Dillon was struck by lightning while holding onto an electrical
04:02line. This caused a body-wide change that turned him into a living electrostatic generator.
04:07Donning a costume and using his electrical powers to rob banks and accumulate the wealth
04:11the perpetually poor man always desired saw him become Electro. This brought him into
04:15conflict with Spider-Man, who definitely beats him on a regular basis, either alone or as
04:19part of the various incarnations of the Sinister Six.
04:22It's important that Batman keeps Electro from recharging from any source. The Dark
04:26Knight would also have to keep any of his own equipment from being disrupted by either
04:30electrical or electromagnetic discharges from Dillon's powers. Max could even disrupt
04:34the electrical currents of Batman's brain if he gets close enough. So clearly this would
04:38be a challenging fight for the world's greatest detective. But with water and overloading
04:42his powers being two of the few ways to overcome Electro, Batman will definitely have a fight
04:46on his hands, even in a suitably grounded Batsuit.
04:50One of the things that will definitely work in Bats' favour, though, is that Dillon
04:53is not very intelligent, if we're being honest. And secondly, he's an extremely
04:56greedy individual, so Batman could, if all else fails, just simply give him a better
05:00offer.
05:016. Lizard
05:02Gifted surgeon Dr. Kurt Connors lost his right arm while saving soldiers in a war-torn region.
05:08Connors then began experimenting with lizards that had the capability to regenerate limbs,
05:12in order to create a serum that he might use to regrow his own. Connors created a serum
05:16and used himself as the first subject, and his arm did begin to regrow, but he also began
05:21to mutate into a vicious reptile creature called the Lizard. Over time, Connors' mind
05:25has controlled his lizard form, while his lizard mind has likewise controlled his human
05:30form.
05:31Working with Connors with members of his own rogues' gallery could help him with dealing
05:33with the Lizard. Helping Dr. Kurt Langstrom's alter-ego Man-Bat may turn Batman towards
05:38working with Connors to finally cure his transformation into the Lizard, and perhaps even refine it
05:43enough that it could replace the Doctor's arm.
05:46If Batman has to fight the Lizard, though, his altercations with his own reptilian menace
05:49killer Croc will definitely come in handy. Whilst the Lizard is smaller and more agile,
05:54he possesses the sort of super strength that makes him Croc superior. The Lizard's speed,
05:58while not superhuman, will require Batman to either take his foe by surprise or utilize
06:03one of his many vehicles to bridge that gap.
06:055. Mysterio
06:07Quentin Beck was a movie special effects artist and stuntman that initially committed his
06:11first crime on a dare. But after an accident on one of the sets got him blackballed from
06:15the industry, Beck pursued crime in earnest as Mysterio. He suffered numerous defeats
06:20at the hand of Spider-Man, causing Beck bouts of depression, but he continued to plague
06:24Spidey both solo and as part of the Sinister Six.
06:28Although Mysterio is unlike most villains Bruce Wayne has ever faced, some of his methods
06:32mirror that of several Batman villains. Mysterio's hallucinogenic gas is not unlike the Scarecrow's
06:37fear toxin. His use of psychological mind-controlling methods is similar to those employed by Hugo
06:41Strange, and the minor villain Film Freak has trapped the Caped Crusader and others
06:45in seemingly lifelike but inventive scenarios.
06:48Mysterio will ultimately have a very hard time fooling Batman, as Bats is obsessive
06:53about details and is the most observant man in the world. If their fight was in Gotham,
06:57it would have to be the perfect Gotham, down to the smallest detail. Bruce knows every
07:02Gotham street and every alley, meaning if the villain got even the smallest detail wrong,
07:06the illusion would literally be shattered with one well-placed Batarang.
07:094. Venom
07:11Spider-Man acquired the alien symbiote on Battleworld during the Secret Wars event.
07:16When Peter discovered that it was a sentient being that had been controlling him in his
07:19sleep, he tried to remove it. It took the bells of Our Lady of Saints Church to make
07:23the creature retreat from Parker's body. Failed photographer Eddie Brock was in the
07:27church below, and the creature bonded with him. Having absorbed Spider-Man's powers,
07:31the pair became known as Venom.
07:34Batman would definitely be in trouble if it comes down to a purely physical altercation
07:37with Venom. With Venom being able to lift 70 tons and having Spider-Man's powers,
07:41Batman's athleticism and fighting skills might fall short. If any of the symbiote broke
07:45off and infected the Dark Knight, it's hopeful that his indomitable will would be enough
07:49to allow him to break free. But given the symbiote's susceptibility to loud noises
07:53and sonic blasts, Batman may want to ask Black Canary for her assistance. Once the symbiote
07:58has left Brock's body, it wouldn't be too hard to contain it in a vessel with a
08:01sonic emitter built in. Although getting the creature off-planet would definitely be the
08:05best bet.
08:063. Dr. Octopus
08:08Dr. Otto Octavius was a brilliant, if arrogant, scientist who created a harness with four
08:13mechanical arms to better handle dangerous material. An accident bathed him in radiation
08:17that fused the harnesses to his body, and made the connection to the arms a mental one
08:22and turned the Doctor into the criminal Doc Ock, who almost married Peter's Aunt May
08:26once and also took over Pete's body for a time, but was pushed to become a superior
08:31Spider-Man.
08:32If Batman has one superpower, it's his incredible mind. Bruce Wayne has such a strong mind and
08:37will that it is unlikely that Dr. Octopus would be able to switch minds with him unless
08:41Bruce was caught completely by surprise. And if he did, Batman would fight viciously to
08:45get control of his own mind back. Even if Otto succeeded, it's unlikely that he could
08:50have done much to make a superior Batman. Otto's arrogance and assumption that he
08:54is always the smartest person in the room is an easy target for Batman to attack. It
08:59will immediately cause him to make mistakes. Also, if the Caped Crusader can keep Ock's
09:03mechanical arms otherwise engaged, it would only take a single punch to deal with this
09:06Doctor.
09:072. J. Jonah Jameson
09:09There is no single person to have a greater effect on the life of Spider-Man than J. Jonah
09:13Jameson. The Daily Bugle publisher has allowed Spidey's alter ego of Peter Parker to continue
09:18to live independently in New York City, but did so at the expense of the costume identity
09:22of Spider-Man. Jameson has turned public opinion against the wall-crawler from the beginning
09:27of his career, and JJ claims that he distrusts all vigilantes, but he has a particular ire
09:31for old Spider-Man.
09:33It is possible that Batman would completely ignore the loudmouth Jameson. I mean, historically,
09:37bats would prefer that he be thought of as an urban myth or as some kind of inhuman monster
09:41to the criminal community, so it's highly possible that he would just let Jameson rant
09:44on while the Dark Knight continued his mission.
09:47Alternatively, Bruce might also grow tired of the noise and buy the entire paper and
09:51the building that houses it. Then, he'd kick Jameson out and promote Robbie Robertson as
09:55the editor of the Daily Bugle. It's likely that when Batman discovered that Jameson paid
09:59for the creation of several villains and spider-slayer robots, he would treat him like any other
10:03criminal and just send him to prison.
10:051. The Green Goblin
10:07No costume villain has had as much of an impact on Peter Parker than the Green Goblin. Norman
10:12Osborn threw Peter's girlfriend from the George Washington Bridge, leading to her death.
10:16Norman's son Harry, Peter's best friend, donned his own villainous costume to make
10:20the hero pay for his father's death. Going further than that, Norman had actually lived
10:24on and engineered the cloning of Peter, and these are just a handful of things that the
10:28Goblin has done.
10:29Now, Batman would probably try to reach Norman Osborn first. Bruce would try to speak to
10:33him as a fellow scientist and meet Norman on an intellectual level to try and defuse
10:37the fight before it even starts. He would probably also play on Norman's heroic accomplishments
10:42and make Osborn think that he is helping Batman.
10:44Now, if it does come down to a fight, the Dark Knight needs to get the Goblin down to
10:48his level. In the comics, Batman doesn't have any flying equipment that equals the
10:51manoeuvrability of the Goblin Glider. Once that's dealt with, though, the pumpkin bombs
10:56aren't much more than overpowered explosive batarangs, and Batman's fighting prowess
11:00is more than a match for the increase in strength that his formula provides Osborn.
11:03So, when it comes down to a physical altercation, our money's on the Batman.
11:07And there we go, my friends. That was how Batman would defeat 10 of Spider-Man's most
11:11iconic villains. I hope that you enjoyed that, and please let me know what you thought about
11:14it down in the comments section below. As always, I've been Jules, you can go follow
11:17me over on Twitter at RetroJ, but the O is A-Zero, and it'd be great to see you over
11:22there. As always, I've been Jules, you have been awesome, never forget that, and I'll
11:25speak to you soon. Bye.